The day after taking the lead of the race in dominant fashion, Ewen Costiou expected to come under pressure on Thursday at the Tour du Limousin-Périgord – Nouvelle-Aquitaine. However, on this third stage, which included the Suc au May climb, the young Breton never looked troubled, thanks also to the support of all his teammates over the 182 kilometres to Égletons. Never really in danger, the Groupama-FDJ United puncheur eventually finished fifth on the line, in the same time as the stage winner. With one final stage remaining in Limoges, he retains a 21-second lead over his closest rival in the general classification.
With 3,000 metres of elevation gain on the menu and the toughest climb of the week, the Suc au May (4 km at 7%), included in the route, the third stage of the Tour du Limousin was shaping up to be the queen stage of the race. Ewen Costiou lined up at the start in Saint-Privat as the overall leader, following his impressive display of strength the previous day. As a result, the Groupama-FDJ United team set off for the 180-kilometre stage with the full weight of the race on its shoulders. Ewen Costiou’s teammates did not shy away from their responsibilities. “A lot of teams wanted to get into the breakaway,” explained Yvon Caër. “For an hour and a half, it was really intense. We had to control everything, and we used up a lot of energy to make sure riders from Decathlon-CMA CGM and Cofidis in particular didn’t get away. Eventually, a group of eleven riders went clear at a point when everyone needed a breather, but there were no really dangerous riders in there. We knew we would be able to control it, so we settled into a rhythm that kept the gap around 1:30. At times, we even had to slow things down.” Behind the breakaway, the strategy was perfectly clear. “Tom wasn’t feeling great today, so we swapped him with Josh for the first climbs, then Rémi did what Rémi does on the flat,” Yvon added.
“Ewen showed a leader’s attitude” – Yvon Caër
As the race approached the Suc au May, around 30 kilometres from the finish, the tension and battle for position in the peloton even saw the gap come down to just 30 seconds. Then came the first major test of the day, and the Groupama-FDJ United riders passed it with flying colours. “The most important thing on that climb was for Maxime and Brieuc to be there with Ewen, and that happened without any problem,” Yvon emphasised. “They were easily at the level of the 20 strongest riders on the climb, which gave us a lot of confidence.” Maxime Decomble and Brieuc Rolland therefore controlled the various attacks perfectly, before the time trial specialist took control of the reduced peloton. “We set a tempo to maintain a good speed and prevent attacks,” Yvon explained. “It became more tactical, and we had to be careful about small gaps opening up, but every time, we reacted decisively.” The yellow jersey’s teammates even allowed the last breakaway rider a little more room ahead of the final climb, 3.5 kilometres long at an average gradient of 5%, with 15 kilometres remaining. Once again, Ewen Costiou could rely on the unwavering support of his two teammates, while also showing his own legs several times to respond to attacks from his main rivals.
“Max was slightly hampered by a digestive issue yesterday, but today he was back to 100% and we know he is one of the ten best riders on climbs like this,” Yvon said. “The same goes for Brieuc, who was incredibly strong in bringing Ewen back to Aranburu’s attack. That took a lot of pressure off Ewen, who also showed a leader’s attitude: he didn’t panic, and he was strong.” At the top of the final climb, all three Groupama-FDJ United riders were even part of a slightly detached seven-man group. During the less demanding final ten kilometres, that group grew somewhat, while the last breakaway rider, Pierre-Henri Basset, maintained a few seconds’ advantage heading into the false flat before the finish. In this final section, the yellow jersey remained in control alongside his teammates, before responding to one last attack from Antoine L’Hote in the closing few hundreds metres. It was ultimately Belgian rider Daan Depuydt who emerged from behind to take the win in the final 250 metres, while Ewen Costiou finished fifth, in the same time.
“The team was incredible” – Ewen Costiou
That brought to a close the first day of defending the leader’s jersey. “We controlled the race really well,” Ewen said with satisfaction. “The team was incredible, with Rémi, Josh and Tom riding all day without anyone else’s help. Then I had a fantastic Max and Brieuc. They had great legs, they helped me brilliantly, and all I had to do was finish the job by responding to the attacks from the main contenders. It was great.” “We showed that we were present at every level of the race,” Yvon added. “At the beginning with Tom, Rémi and Josh, then with Brieuc and Max, who were almost at Ewen’s level. At no point did we have any doubts about our physical condition. We have a really well-balanced team and a perfect mindset. All the riders are fully committed, in the mix, and that is really reassuring for the leader.” Ewen Costiou now has just 180 kilometres left to cover if he is to complete the overall victory double at the Tour du Limousin. “The approach will be the same tomorrow: control the breakaway and be extremely vigilant towards the finish, because gaps can open up very quickly on an urban circuit, and we don’t have a huge margin to work with,” Yvon concluded.
