Valentin Madouas crowned French road champion

Valentin Madouas won the French road cycling championship on Sunday June 25, dominating in Cel, in the North, a peloton tortured by the heat and by the armada of Groupama-FDJ. The man in the shadows of the team of Thibaut Pinot or even David Gaudu was able to find the light, on a bumpy and brittle course, 224 kilometers long.

At 26, the native of Brest was accompanied successively by his teammates, who placed him on the ramp to conclude the last 20 kilometers alone.

A fairly logical end, given the race strategy put in place by the team led by Marc Madiot. With a frantic pace at the front, the riders in blue tunics took advantage of a difficult route, as much as the heat, to wring the peloton. A paying choice, since only 23 of the 141 starters were able to reach the finish line.

The “Breton tractor”, as his friends and teammates call him, thus inherited the tricolor tunic after 5 hours 41 minutes and 13 hundredths of an effort. He succeeds Florian Sénéchal (Soudal Quick-Step), survivor of this race in line, and last to cross the line. Rudy Molard (Groupama-FDJ) and Julien Bernard (Trek-Segafredo) took second and third places in the event.

Sports department