While the Tour de France is in full swing, the Tour de l’Ain began this Saturday towards Bourg-en-Bresse. In a short first stage, the sprinters were expected. Yet, a rider from the breakaway managed to stay away for just a few centimetres on the line while Laurence Pithie proved the fastest of the sprinters. Due to a misjudgement of the bunch, the New Zealander had to settle for second place. Hillier days are now looming.
As a starter, a stage without much difficulty was on the menu this Saturday for the peloton on the Tour de l’Ain. Barely 137 kilometers were to be covered from Laiz to Bourg-en-Bresse, and a sprint was anticipated in the middle of the afternoon. With Laurence Pithie at the start, the Groupama-FDJ cycling team was among the favorites for the day’s victory. “We took the lead early on, also because the whole day was done on small roads, and it was better to be positioned in front,” explained Yvon Caër. “Only two riders went in the breakaway, so it was perfect.” Robin Plamondon (CIC U Nantes Atlantiques) and Fergus Browning (Trinity Racing) led the race at the front, and the peloton easily managed the situation behind the duo. The gap stabilized around two minutes all day and was even reduced to one minute entering the last forty kilometres. The chase therefore seemed well underway, the leading duo only had a thirty-second lead with fifteen kilometres to go, then came the turning point of the day. “It got disorganized,” explained Yvon. “Teams that were riding stopped pulling, thinking that it was already done or in order to save energy for the sprint, but they forgot the important part: catching the breakaway. We got to a small technical road, and the pace eased down. There was a disagreement. As for us, we had been riding almost all day and we didn’t want to make Rudy and Rémy work too much today.”
“It was just unfortunate and a misjudgement”, Laurence Pithie
While Browning got rid of Plamondon in the lead, the gap went up to one minute with ten kilometres to go. The peloton tried to react, Groupama-FDJ once again took part in the pursuit, but the Australian rider proved hard to catch. So hard that he eventually made it to the line. Despite a peloton going at full speed and a final sprint launched by Laurence Pithie 200 meters from the finish, Browning kept a few centimetres on the New Zealand rider from Groupama-FDJ. “We still thought we could come back in the end,” said Yvon. “We had our plan for the sprint, and Sam did a perfect lead-out for Laurence, but the gap was still 7-8 seconds at the flamme rouge, and that was enough for the leading man. We came back so close. It’s frustrating and it’s a real shame. It went all well except for this hesitation behind the breakaway, but it’s easy to say so afterwards.” “We controlled the race all day and we worked very well as a team,” added Laurence. “Unfortunately, we got it wrong, like the rest of the peloton. It’s disappointing to be so close, but that’s racing sometimes. For sure, it wasn’t a lack of form. It was just unfortunate and a misjudgement. My legs felt good, and it’s good to come to the race and win the bunch sprint. Unfortunately, it was for second today, but we can keep moving and hopefully finish the race with a win.”
If this happens, it will be on a completely different profile since two hillier stages are now looming. “Tomorrow, it will come down to the legs, it won’t be too tactical,” concluded Yvon. “We pretty much know how it’s going to unfold. If we have the legs, we will be in front, and I think we have them. There is a great EF Education-EasyPost team at the start, but we are confident, and I think we have the means to do well.”
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