The Groupama-FDJ United cycling team experienced a thrilling stage finish this Friday on the Tour Down Under. After being part of a breakaway formed from kilometre zero alongside two other riders, Enzo Paleni proved to be the last man to resist the peloton. In excellent form, the young Frenchman was caught only 800 metres from the line, having kept the sprinters in trouble for a long time. In the final sprint, Lewis Bower fought his way through to secure an impressive third place.
After a quiet showing on the second stage, Groupama-FDJ United were determined to bounce back on Friday during stage three of the Tour Down Under, despite a course suited to sprinters on the way to Nairne. “We had the team briefing last night and we agreed to say that there were still opportunities to seize here, and that we had to keep fighting on every stage,” emphasized Jussi Veikkanen. “The goal today was to create a breakaway, knowing that very hot temperatures were expected, and that the final was not as straightforward as it looked on paper, which could put the sprinters’ teams under pressure.” Always eager to go on the attack, Enzo Paleni initiated the day’s breakaway from the very first seconds. “The plan was to get away with strong riders,” he explained. “That’s always better for good cooperation. I knew it was going to be hard, but I’d seen that there would be a tailwind over the last ten kilometres, and I thought that could give us a chance. I love the art of the breakaway, and every time I join one, my goal is to do everything I can to make it to the finish.”
“It will pay off one day” – Enzo Paleni
Alongside the race’s best climber Martin Urianstad Bugge and Baptiste Veistroffer, the rider from Beauvais was kept within three minutes all day and had to use some clever tactics to try to beat the peloton. “We talked with Enzo after halfway and told ourselves it was time to start playing,” said Jussi. “We rode well all day, then we really slowed down about fifty kilometres from the finish to make the bunch slow down as well, before going to full gas in the final hour,” Enzo explained. The gap first dropped to around thirty seconds with 35 kilometres to go, before growing again to nearly one minute thirty with 20 kilometres remaining. “We started to believe with ten kilometers to go, because Enzo still had a one-minute lead and there were three kilometers of downhill with a tailwind,” Jussi added. “There was a small hope!” Enzo Paleni even entered the final four kilometres with a solid 40-second gap, but a final uphill section blunted the Frenchman’s momentum and allowed the peloton to close in significantly.
Alone at the front as he entered the last three kilometres, the former member of “La Conti” maintained a handful of seconds over the peloton until the flamme rouge, before inevitably being caught 800 meters from the line, having spent almost the entire stage off the front. “It’s not the first time I’ve been caught so close to the finish, but I’ll go for it again,” promised Enzo. “I like these breakaways on flat stages because you can play with the peloton—it’s more interesting. I enjoyed today. Unfortunately I didn’t make it to the end, but I’m sure it will pay off one day.” “What Enzo did today was very good, and it shows that there are opportunities when you try,” added Jussi. No sooner had the rider from Picardy been caught than the sprint was about to kick off, and it was Lewis Bower who unexpectedly took over the hopes of Groupama-FDJ United.
“It’s just unbelievable” – Lewis Bower
“He wasn’t feeling great yesterday and wasn’t very confident for today,” explained Jussi. “We’d planned to go with Tom, but he had a mechanical issue at the worst possible moment, so we told Lewis he could sprint.” The 21-year-old New Zealander, also coming from “La Conti,” made the most of the opportunity. “Once I got the green light, I tried to stay near Ineos and Sam Welsford,” said the Kiwi. “I came past him on the climb with three kilometers to go because we were going really fast, then I tried to keep a good position the whole time, surfing around the lead-out trains. With about 500 metres to go, Welsford came back up with his team and I managed to get onto his wheel. I launched at 200 meters to try to come around, but I didn’t quite have the speed, so I came back into the slipstream and hung on for third place!”
Lewis Bower thus claimed the team’s first podium of the 2026 season, and his first personally at WorldTour level. “It’s just unbelievable,” he said. “After putting in so much hard work and sacrificing so much time away from my family and friends, it’s really nice to see that all the efforts I’ve made to reach the WorldTour are paying off. So to get a podium is super special and an emotional result for me.” “We’re really happy for him,” concluded Jussi. “Lewis is young, almost racing at home, and his family was here today. These are rare opportunities for a New Zealand rider to be able to perform in front of loved ones. This great result will also give him a lot of confidence in his form, because it wasn’t an easy stage.” On Saturday, the peloton was due to tackle the queen stage of the Tour Down Under toward Willunga Hill, but the forecast extreme heat led the organizers to remove the famous climb from the route, which was reduced to 131 kilometres.
