You should have seen the joy in the eyes of Thibaut Pinot and David Gaudu when they found their hero of the day. Arriving several minutes after him, and although exhausted by the demands of an exceptional circuit and its 4,000 m drop, the two strong men of Groupama-FDJ rushed to the area reserved for interviews, then long and warmly congratulated Valentin Madouas, solo winner this Sunday in the furnace of Cassel (North).
At 26, the native of Brest won this Sunday, June 25 his first title of champion of France among professionals, seven years after having acquired that of amateurs. A consecration in an incredible atmosphere, at the end of a crazy race where only 23 runners crossed the finish line, a record. The approximately 32 degrees recorded on the summit of inner Flanders, as much as the repetition of these short but intense efforts, got the better of the bodies of dozens of runners.
One week before the start of the Tour de France, it is impossible to dream of a better appetizer. The heat, the drama, an audience on fire, it’s a bit like we were already there, except that this time we were sure that a Frenchman was going to win. “We had a magnificent race, with a large audience and a magnificent course, in dantesque conditions, appreciated the hero of the day. I had made this championship a goal, the course was a bit typical for me. I knew I was going to be ready. »
Madouas did not lack allies to build his victory. The men in blue dynamited the race from the first kilometers by attacking at the top of the Cassel climb via the Porte d’Aire, the biggest difficulty of the day (1.2 km of ascent at 8% on average, with a maximum slope of 15%, to be crossed 16 times). Up front, there were up to eight representatives of Groupama-FDJ, “The team did a crazy job”, thanked the new wearer of the blue-white-red jersey, when his teammate and runner-up of the day Rudy Molard relished a “perfect team race”.
One week before the start of the Grande Boucle scheduled for San Sebastián (Spain), Marc Madiot’s men showed collective power and more than interesting individual forms. And if their leader for the month of July, David Gaudu, turned off the engine 20 km from the finish, he was then in the game for the win. Reassuring after his totally failed Dauphiné. “It gives the group confidence and I think we will leave calmly on the Tour”, concluded Thibaut Pinot, finally 7th place in the race, just over four minutes from the winner of the day.
If he had “a blow less well” when the race got carried away, the Franc-Comtois put on a show and was also reassured before setting off for his last Tour de France. “The form is there,” he analyzes. When she is there in training, there is no reason why she should not be there in the race. I’m satisfied and it’s a great day that will remain in my career. And inevitably it gives you confidence, especially with this heat.
Madouas expected on the 1st stage of the Tour
On the other hand, the other darling of the French public is largely overlooked. Julian Alaphilippe (Soudal-Quick-Step) grimacing, often placed at the back of his group, visibly affected by the heat, never seemed in the game and ended up putting his foot down after nine laps of this circuit without mercy. Victim of repeated vomiting, he preferred to drop the case rather than tempt fate a few days before the start in the Spanish Basque Country, where he will be one of the favorites for the first stage.
Valentin Madouas, who couldn’t hold back his tears in the last two kilometers, will approach him with a new status and a new jersey. The blue-white-red will be well on the roads of the Tour de France, and with ambitions. In addition to being a major support for Gaudu, the Brestois could well see himself winning his first stage there: “I have achieved one of the objectives of my career. I was probably missing this victory to trigger something. After all, the stage one profile suits him well, too. The yellow jersey over the blue-white-red, it would look a bit cool, right?
