Early breakaway wins Tour de la Provence as Arnaud Tendon claims biggest career victory
Arnaud Tendon of the modest Van Rysel Roubaix team claimed the biggest victory of his career on Friday. In the opening stage of the Tour de La Provence, he made it from an early breakaway with Mattia Bais ahead of a charging peloton.
What kind of stage was on the program?
The first stage of the Tour de la Provence was a hilly route between Marseille and Saint-Victoret. A total of 163 kilometers had to be covered, including the Col de Mazauges (5.3 kilometers at 5.3%) and Pas de la Coulle (5.1 kilometers at 5%). The last sixty kilometers had hardly any elevation, so a sprint finish was expected.
Who were in the breakaway and what was their advantage?
Mattia Bais, Bailey McDonald, David Zanutta, Jonas Walton, and Arnaud Tendon made up the early break, which held a maximum lead of about two minutes. At 58 kilometers from the finish, Zanutta and McDonald had to drop back, followed by Walton in the last kilometers of the stage.
How did the finale unfold?
Tendon and Bais started the final kilometers of the stage in rainy Provence with a small 25-second gap and managed, after a thrilling finale, to stay ahead of the charging peloton. In the sprint, Tendon claimed the victory.
What else stood out today?
The organization within the peloton was strong, with INEOS Grenadiers, EF Education-EasyPost, and Lidl-Trek doing everything possible to reel in the remaining escapees for Mathias Vacek, Luke Lamperti, and Axel Laurence. Luke Lamperti won the sprint for third place, while Unibet Rose Rockets finished outside the top 10.
