The lead-out man turned sprinter. On stage two of Paris–Nice this Monday, Clément Russo put his lead-out duties aside to take part in the final sprint himself in Montargis. Isolated in the final kilometres, he nevertheless managed to find his way through the bunch to secure ninth place and a top 10 finish. On Tuesday, a crucial team time trial will be on the menu of the “Race to the Sun”.
On paper, it was the least demanding stage of Paris–Nice. Between Épône and Montargis, the peloton certainly had 187 kilometres to cover but very little elevation to tackle. Moreover, weather conditions were also quite favourable across the departments of Yvelines, Essonne, Seine-et-Marne and Loiret. “There was a bit of nervousness at the start because of the wind, but it was forecast not to be significant, and once the race got underway it turned out to be even less,” said William Green. “So it became less of a factor.” A classic race scenario unfolded throughout the day, with only four – then two – riders forming the breakaway, which was nevertheless caught relatively early, around sixty kilometres from the finish. The peloton briefly became lively ahead of the intermediate sprint, a crash occurred a few kilometres later, and then Dan Hoole attempted to surprise the sprinters in the final twenty kilometres.
“It’s quite impressive” – William Green
Yet, the Dutch rider only had a handful of seconds’ advantage as the race approached Montargis and the final five kilometres, which were a bit technical. From the first key points, Clément Russo made sure he was positioned at the front. “Today was his opportunity,” added William. “And honestly, he did a super job. We know he’s got this amazing feeling in the final, we already saw it at the Ruta del Sol. He showed it again today and executed the plan perfectly.” Never sparing his efforts to move up and find space when necessary, the usual lead-out man was able to enter the final straight within a first group of riders slightly detached from a very stretched peloton. On the line, Clément Russo sealed it with ninth place, while Max Kanter took the victory. “This result seems like nothing, but at the same time it’s really something when you think that he did this all alone in the final five kilometres,” said William. “It could even have been better if he hadn’t been blocked in the sprint.”
After taking his first top 10 of the season, the Lyon native will return to his domestique role on Tuesday for a decisive team time trial. “The goal is clear: to improve on the past years,” concluded William. “This is the main objective, and we want to be in the top 10. We have a nice team, and we did a good preparation. We’ll make the maximum effort and assess things tomorrow evening.”
