It is certainly not for a lack of trying, but for now, the top 5 is still slipping away from Groupama-FDJ United’hands at the Tour de France. On Thursday, it was first Clément Russo who secured eighth place for the third time since the Grand Départ, in a hectic sprint finish in Chalon-sur-Saône. On Friday, in a breakaway of around fifty riders including five members of the team, Clément Braz Afonso proved to be the strongest of the squad. The young man managed to stay with the best climbers on the Ballon d’Alsace before experiencing the adrenaline of a high-stakes final heading towards Belfort. Although he also had to settle for eighth place, the quality of his performance did not go unnoticed.
The day after a sprint finish in Nevers that was never really in doubt, the Tour peloton returned to the road on Thursday with a completely different mindset. From the start at the Magny-Cours motor racing circuit, a fierce battle for the breakaway unfolded over the first twenty-five kilometres. The sprinters’ teams, keen not to miss out on what was probably their final opportunity, initially managed to keep control by allowing only one rider to go clear. “Most teams were expecting a sprint, but we knew there was a little bit of uncertainty, so we wanted to stay in the mix in case a breakaway could go,” explained Yvon Caër. “Ewen was smart enough to follow the counter-attack that went after the intermediate sprint, but the sprinters’ teams wanted to make sure they kept things under control. When he realised the pressure behind was too strong, he sat up.” After going clear with Baptiste Veistroffer sixty kilometres from the finish, the Breton rider was caught by the peloton ten kilometres later. However, the race was far from a straightforward procession towards a sprint finish, as numerous attacks followed on the final climbs of the day, between thirty and fifteen kilometres from the finish. Lorenzo Germani, Romain Grégoire and Clément Braz Afonso joined the action. “We had sensed that Lidl-Trek would try to blow the race apart on the final climbs, but they weren’t difficult enough to make the difference,” added Yvon.
“Three sprint top-10 finishes with Clément is a great satisfaction”- Yvon Caër
The sprint finish did eventually materialise, but after such an unpredictable final, the bunch sprint was equally chaotic, with a crash occurring inside the final kilometre. “Clément once again managed to do what he knows how to do,” said Yvon. “It was quite technical until 1.5 kilometres from the finish, and he managed to position himself exactly where he needed to be. He is no longer used to sprinting, but he naturally improves every time he gets involved in one. This time, he even finished with good speed to take eighth place. It’s his third sprint top-10 finish, and that’s a great satisfaction.” After what was potentially the last opportunity for the pure sprinters, Friday presented a genuine chance for the breakaway specialists on Romain Grégoire’s home roads in the Franche-Comté region, notably with the Ballon d’Alsace on the route. Active from the start, the French champion did everything he could to get into the break, which he initially achieved alongside Quentin Pacher, Clément Russo and Lorenzo Germani in a group of around thirty riders. “There was another big fight, but eventually the break went quite quickly,” explained Stéphane Goubert. “For us, it was perfect. We first had four riders up front with Romain, who had ambitions, but we also had Clément [Braz Afonso] in the chasing group, and he didn’t have to work. He ‘just’ had to let himself be brought back.”
During the first part of the race, Romain Grégoire had the opportunity to ride through a crowd fully behind him in Saint-Vit, where a gathering had been organised for him. “It was nice, I tried to enjoy a little of what was happening on the side of the road, but the heavy legs quickly took over with that first hour at an average speed of 55 km/h,” said the French champion. While the peloton eventually decided to let the breakaway go, the chasing group, on the other hand, struggled to make the junction with the leaders, which only happened a few kilometres before the intermediate sprint in Melisey. Shortly afterwards, the climbs began, first with the Col des Croix (5 km at 5%), but above all with the Ballon d’Alsace (9 km at 7%), where the pace immediately increased. Halfway up the climb, just twenty riders remained at the front, including Clément Braz Afonso for Groupama-FDJ United. The young rider continued to hold on and was still in contention when the group was reduced to ten riders with two kilometres remaining before the summit. “I was completely on the limit on the final climb, I couldn’t push the big gear anymore,” he explained. “I thought I was going to blow up at the top.” Yet he produced a superb effort to never lose contact, allowing him to come over the climb alongside some serious contenders such as Pidcock, McNulty, Wellens, Vauquelin, Jegat, Van Gils, as well as Plapp, Schmid and Tejada.
“I’m not here just to discover” – Clément Braz Afonso
After the descent, with around fifteen kilometres remaining to the finish, the two latter riders mentioned above opened a gap within the group. “Another race started at that point, it became very tactical,” explained Clément. “I had more or less based my race on Wellens because I know he is smart in finals like this, but it was two other riders who went clear.” A gap of ten seconds quickly formed before growing to twenty seconds with five kilometres remaining. Despite repeated counter-attacks from the chasing group, the leading duo was able to fight for the victory, while the rest of the group battled for the remaining places. “I wanted to get the best possible result, so I gave it everything with 600 metres to go, in the corner, and I thought it could work,” said Clément. “Unfortunately, McNulty brought everyone back and then I didn’t have the kick left for the sprint. Maybe I should have stayed in the wheels, but I didn’t really believe in my sprint.” At the end of the final straight, he had to settle for eighth place, while Mauro Schmid took the victory. “I’m not here just to discover, I’m here to get results,” insisted Clément. “I knew this was my opportunity today and I don’t think I made any mistakes. I did what I could in the final. It’s disappointing not to do better. I’m a little frustrated because I always want to do better, and that’s exactly what leads me to be at the front in races like this and get the best out of myself.”
Stéphane Goubert concluded: “Clément produced a strong final, but the course didn’t really suit him in the end, which is a shame. He still took risks, he gave everything he had, he handled himself well on terrain that wasn’t really his speciality, and he continues to learn. I also want to congratulate the whole group, who have been delivering, as they often have since the start of the Tour. After the team time trial and Clément’s sprints, it seems we are becoming regulars in eighth place… But there is still plenty left to do in this Tour!”
