9 th in Barjac, Lucia Jounier isn’t satisifed, she would have liked to do better by launching least her sprint earlier which would have allowed her to finish higher, which would be more rewarded the work of her teammates.
Photos Florian Frison
On the line
Lucie Jounier
“There were one hundred and twelve kilometres to go on this first stage of the Tour Féminin International de l’Ardèche with two best climber classifications to negotiate, on the occasion of the last bump which was located about ten-twelve kilometres from the arrived, some leaders tried to get out. This climb was seven kilometres long, and it turned out to be fairly easy. It scared me a little on paper, but in the end I felt great. I was rather serene in view of the arrival. I did a good descent, the girls too. Amandine, Pauline, Typhaine helped me to find my place. I’m just a little disappointed with my place, I was really hoping to do better. 9th is not exceptional, but it is ok. I really wanted to achieve a better performance in order to thank my teammates for the work they have done. I found myself a little too early in front, between 600 and 500 metres from the finish, in the last roundabout before the line, I was already in second position, and then a wave of competitors came back to me from behind, and I got overwhelmed. However, we had a good race, there was an attempt to break and we were in it. I now hope that it will smile on us before the end of this ordeal…”
The debrief ‘
Grégoire Le Calvé, Sporting Director
“Five riders started on a breakaway from the start, for our part we had decided that if the breakaways were reduced in number not to go in this type of stroke. When there was, then, an attempt at echelons, all our girls were present in the first. It is a good indication of form and group cohesion. Sandra falls at 75 kilometres, but she returned to the peloton without panicking, taking her time. During the final climb, Movistar and Bike-Exchange made a big splash, but all of our riders managed to switch to the first group, which was only about fifty units strong. We had bet on a sprint with Lucie, led by Typhaine but as the peloton held the entire road and it was rubbing a lot, they had trouble finding each other. Lucia ranks 9th , Typhaine is 20th. All the riders of Arkéa Pro Cycling Team finish at the same time, except Amandine who takes a small break after having worked well by replacing her sprinters. All our riders were present on this stage, they are placed for the general after a great collective race. It also means that we have the means to do well in the coming days, probably even better than 9th in the Tour Féminin International Ardèche“.