This year’s Giro Next Gen did not go the way Jérôme Gannat’s riders had hoped. Faced with extremely strong competition, Groupama-FDJ United’s development team was unable to achieve its initial goals. Nevertheless, after losing three riders by the halfway point of the race, the team adopted an aggressive approach during the final days in an attempt to turn things around. After a long solo effort on Saturday, Rémi Daumas secured 18th place overall, while Soan Ruesche and Johan Blanc, both first-year U23 riders, also successfully completed the eight-day race.
At the halfway point of the “Baby Giro”, frustration was the dominant feeling within “La Conti”, which had struggled to capitalize on the sprint finishes with Eliott Boulet. As a result, expectations were high for the second half of the race, which was more suited to the general classification contenders, especially as Rémi Daumas was still in the mix. Unfortunately, Stage 5, held on a circuit around Bacoli, did not go as planned. “We had two very early abandons, Baptiste and Eliott,” explained Jérôme Gannat. “The day didn’t start well, and the circuit turned out to be extremely demanding, with a high pace and constant accelerations. Our three remaining riders weren’t ideally positioned, and when the peloton really stretched things out on the penultimate lap, Rémi and Soan found themselves caught behind a split.” Against a front group of around forty riders charging towards the finish, the gap at the line grew to three minutes. “It was a significant loss, but when you’re no longer in the wheels on a circuit like that, things happen very quickly,” Jérôme said. “It was mainly a positioning issue, which is still an area where Rémi can improve. Even so, we weren’t discouraged because the two mountain stages were coming up, and it was still possible to move back up the general classification.”
“We had nothing left to lose” – Jérôme Gannat
On Friday, the peloton headed to Monte Livata (14 km at 7%) at the end of a sixth stage featuring 3,500 metres of climbing. Soan Ruesche and Johan Blanc seized the opportunity to join a breakaway of around twenty riders. “We had two-thirds of the team up the road, which was a positive,” said Jérôme. “Both riders are in their first U23 season and riding their first Giro. It was a good day for them, but they never had much of a gap. They reached the foot of the final climb with just over thirty seconds on the peloton.” Meanwhile, the battle among the favourites began almost immediately. “The first slopes were steep, with four kilometres at 10% and sections above 15%,” Jérôme explained. “Rémi was reasonably well positioned, but it was extremely hot, and he overheated a little, much like at the Mercan’Tour Classic. He lost quite a few places and a lot of time, but fortunately he was able to reconnect with Johan, who did a great job supporting him and limiting the losses. Even so, they still lost four minutes by the finish, and our top-10 overall objective became almost impossible.” Twenty-sixth on the stage, just behind his teammate, Rémi Daumas moved into 22nd place overall heading into the weekend.
On Saturday, for the second and final mountain stage, the team truly had “nothing left to lose,” according to Jérôme. “Given our position, we could afford to take risks and try to win the stage. The plan was to get into the breakaway and hope it could gain as much time as possible. There was a long climb midway through the stage, followed by 45 kilometres to the finish, but the break only reached the climb with a lead of 1’30”. We needed much more than that. As soon as the climb began, Rémi attacked on his own and produced a very strong ascent, almost matching the pace of the favourites’ group. He started the descent with a one-minute lead and descended well, but then came several false-flat sections that worked against him while attacks were coming from behind.” Initially caught by four riders, the young Frenchman fought on until ten kilometres from the finish before finally being caught near the final climb. He then had to settle for 18th place on the stage. “After all the effort he had already put in, he couldn’t have done any more,” Jérôme concluded. “He spent over forty kilometres alone and burned a lot of energy. He gave it a go and spent a long time leading a Giro Next Gen stage. That’s no small achievement. He simply didn’t have enough of an advantage to make it work.”
“I felt a real commitment to turning things around” – Jérôme Gannat
Although he moved into the overall top 20 after Saturday’s stage (18th), Rémi Daumas had little chance to climb any higher during Sunday’s closing time trial in L’Aquila. “It was a very demanding course,” added Jérôme. “The objective for our three remaining riders was to ride it flat out because we don’t often get the chance to compete in this type of effort. It’s not Rémi’s speciality, but he produced a very strong ride and was fully committed.” Thanks to a 31st-place finish in the time trial, the Ronde de l’Isard stage winner secured 18th place overall. “We had quite a few ambitions at the start: a top-10 overall finish, a stage victory, and getting all six riders to the finish,” Jérôme summarized. “Only three finished, and we suffered quite a bit of bad luck on Stage 4, where crashes had major consequences. However, I felt there was strong solidarity within the team and a real commitment to turning things around by taking the initiative over the final three days. That’s the positive takeaway, even if the harsh reality of sport and of the final result make it look like we underperformed. We know Rémi had the potential to finish in the top 10, but his bad day at Monte Livata, combined with the losses on the Bacoli stage, proved very costly. We did everything possible to ensure the riders came in good condition, but we still need to keep pushing and take another step physically. As for Johan and Soan, they gained invaluable experience in a race of an extremely high level, and that will only benefit them in the future.”
