At the end of these five days of the European Championships in Apeldoorn (Netherlands), France will have finally obtained 7 medals. With a nice surprise, in gold, this Sunday.
In a race marked by a few falls, notably that of the British and world champions Elinor Barker and Neah Evans, Valentine Fortin and Marion Borras knew how to stay on the bike to win the American. Already in the lead with 20 laps remaining, they dominated the Belgian duo Lotte Kopecky-Katrijn De Clercq.
In the process, the surprising Oscar Nilsson-Julien added a medal by winning bronze in the points race. A week after his title of French champion, the 22-year-old native of London, who has dual French-British nationality, was only beaten by the Dane Niklas Larsen and the Spaniard Sebastian Mora.
Vigier, Gros and Kouamé off the podium on the Keirin
The French team could even hope for an even more fruitful harvest, with Sébastien Vigier in the keirin final, like Mathilde Gros and Marie-Divine Kouamé. But the 26-year-old rider took fifth place, far from winner Harrie Lavreysen, who flew through the race.
For their part, the French women initially battled among themselves to take the lead before breaking down during the final sprint. The French champion therefore failed in 4th place and Kouamé finished 6th in a race won by the German Lea Sophie Friedrich.
Earlier in the afternoon, in the individual pursuit, the British Josie Knight won the title ahead of the German Franziska Brausse.
