The first French rider in the UCI ranking is Thibaut Pinot, although retired from the pelotons, symbol of an illness which affects the heads of the tricolor cycling while other riders, more discreet, are having a very good start to the season.
At the dawn of the Tour of Flanders, after 3 months of competition, here is a first assessment of the performances of the French riders.
They shined
Lenny Martinez (Groupama-FDJ) had an excellent start to the season in his second professional year. The 20-year-old rider has already won twice in classics: the Classic Var and the Trofeo Laigueglia. On Gran Camiño, the climber finished 2nd behind Jonas Vingegaard then on the Tour of Catalonia, he ranked 7th, best young person’s jersey on his back. An almost perfect start to the season while expectations after his first season were high.
Axel Laurance (Alpecin-Deceuninck) took an example from Jasper Philipsen in Catalonia. With his puncher profile, however, it was difficult to imagine the Frenchman setting up a massive sprint for his first World Tour victory. Before that, the Breton had treated himself to Mads Pedersen during the first stage of the Tour de Bessèges. Laurance (22 years old) will now aim for a third success this year with the Amstel Gold Race and the Flèche Wallonne in sight.
Benoît Cosnefroy (Décathlon-AG2R) missed out on his 2023 season, which concluded without any victory. The Frenchman has fully relaunched at the start of the year, with three successes already under his belt (the second stage of the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var, the general classification and Paris-Camembert). Cosnefroy also distinguished himself at World Tour level (6th in Strade Bianche, 20th in Milan-Sanremo) and will set off in the Ardennes classics with full confidence.
Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ), one of the revelations of last season, showed that he was at the level, culminating in a 2nd place in the Faun Ardèche Classic, ahead of Mattias Skjelmose Jensen and Felix Gall in particular. Present in Italy on Tirreno-Adriatico, the young Frenchman (20 years old) achieved two top 10s and finished 13th in the general classification. Grégoire should also aim for the Ardennes classics, suiting his qualities as a puncher.
They surprised
Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step), little known to the general public, has already won twice in his first professional season at the age of 19. The Frenchman showed his qualities from his first race of the year, ahead of an experienced sprinter like Alberto Dainese on the Trofeo Ses Salines before confirming ahead of his teammate on the Tour of Oman.
Paul Lapeira (Décathlon-AG2R) is leader of the Coupe de France ranking, winner of 2 rounds (Classique Loire-Atlantique, Cholet Agglo Tour) although he had never raised his arms before. The Breton also distinguished himself in other classics with a 7th place in the Trofeo Laigueglia and a 7th place in the Faun Drôme Classic.
They weren’t lucky
Julian Alaphilippe (Soudal Quick-Step) often went to the mat at the start of the season, first on the Nieuwsblad then on the Strade Bianche, forcing him to abandon twice. Then, when the double world champion (2020, 2021) finally seemed able to play for the win, on Milan-San Remo, a puncture in the last kilometer prevented him from fighting for a better ranking than his 9th place.
Florian Sénéchal (Arkéa – B & B Hôtels) fell alongside Julian Alaphilippe during the Nieuwsblad, fracturing his collarbone on the Belgian roads. The 2022 French champion therefore missed part of his objectives and will try to come back for the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix even if his form is uncertain.
Christophe Laporte (Visma-Lease a Bike) fell ill recently while he was designated leader for Milan-San Remo in the absence of Wout Van Aert. After withdrawing from Ghent-Wevelgem and A Travers la Flanders, Laporte had to resign himself to missing the Tour of Flanders. The European champion had nevertheless completed two good first races (5th in the Nieuwsblad and 4th in Kuurne-Bruxelles-Kuurne.)
Romain Bardet (dsm-firmenich) also fell on the roads of Tirreno-Adriatico during the first mountain stage, causing him a concussion. He had previously taken places of honor in the first races of the year (3rd in the Classic Var, 13th in the Faun Drôme Classic, 17th in the Strade Bianche). Difficult to assess his real level in this first part of the season.
They disappointed
Arnaud Démare (Arkéa – B & B Hôtels) did not have a successful start to the season with Emmanuel Hubert’s team. The sprinter nevertheless had his chance to win stages but never seemed well led by his teammates, nor even had the legs to raise his arms (never better than 5th). Tired, he decided to skip Paris-Roubaix.
Valentin Madouas (Groupama-FDJ) seems out of shape at the start of the year. After a promising 5th place in the Tour of Murcia, the French champion was invisible on the French classics and on these two contested tours (Tour of Algarve and Tirreno-Adriatico). It wasn’t much better on the first cobbled classic (43rd in E3 Saxo). His 13th place on A Travers la Flandre is a little reassuring, just before one of his big objectives: the Tour of Flanders.
David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ) is having a complicated start to the season. After a decent return to competition (6th in the Classic Var), the climber missed the Gran Camiño (18th at 5’38” from Jonas Vingegaard) even though he had fallen the day before the first reconnaissance stage . On Paris-Nice, Gaudu fell off his bike again before taking some rest to treat a muscle injury. The leader of Groupama-FDJ will return to competition during the Route Adélie.
They are hampered by injuries
Victor Lafay (Décathlon-AG2R) has still not competed in a single race this year. The star recruit of Vincent Lavenu’s team is the victim of patellar syndrome, preventing him from preparing properly before the races. No return date has yet been mentioned. Paul Penhoët (Groupama-FDJ) has also not been seen in the race this season. The promising French sprinter underwent surgery at the start of the year for a torn ligament. He had been announced to be absent for three months and should therefore be back.
Guillaume Martin (Cofidis) reassured on the last stage of the Tour of Catalonia, finishing 3rd. But before that, the puncher from the northern team was dragging his time on the roads, suffering from tendinitis in his knee. The problem seems to have been resolved and Martin will now be able to concentrate on the Ardennes.
Bryan Coquard (Cofidis) took places of honor without managing to win (three second places and two third places). Jason Tesson (TotalEnergies) distinguished himself in the Bruges-La Panne semi-classic (4th behind Philipsen and Merlier) then won La Roue Tourangelle in the sprint, the first victory for his team in a road race. Axel Zingle (Cofidis) had a good start to the season with 5 top 5s including 2 in Tirreno-Adriatico, World Tour race. Aurélien Paret-Peintre (Décathlon-AG2R) finished 13th in Paris-Nice with 3 top 10s, showing a good level on the mountainous stages.
