Maeva Squiban powered to victory in the stage 4 individual time trial at the Tour Féminin International de l’Ardèche, on 6th September, despite nearly abandoning the race days earlier. The 22-year-old clocked 24 minutes and 4 seconds over the 15.7-kilometre course, narrowly beating Dominika Wlodarczyk by one second and finishing 17 seconds ahead of Nina Buijsman, who took third.
Squiban’s success followed a challenging week after a crash during stage 2 left her with a potential fracture. Reflecting on the win in an interview with DirectVelo, she admitted, “I fell two days ago in the last descent, and we weren’t sure what was wrong. They think I might have a small fracture in my radius, but I felt okay. I could have abandoned, but I decided to try. It wasn’t easy yesterday because I came back late from the hospital and only slept five hours between stages 2 and 3.”
Her victory came as a surprise. “When I crossed the line, I didn’t think I could win,” she explained. “I was told over the radio that I had the second-fastest time and saw my power numbers weren’t great. I thought I might make the top 10. And then, I won…”
Thalita De Jong retained the overall lead after finishing fourth, 30 seconds behind Squiban. Her ride extended her advantage to 37 seconds over Marion Bunel, with Lotte Claes now 48 seconds behind in third. De Jong, confident about the final weekend, said, “I’m happy with how things are going. It wasn’t easy, but I feel good going into the next stages.”
Squiban’s directeur sportif, Grégoire Le Calvé, had predicted a strong result, saying on Tuesday, “We’re ambitious for the time trial; both Maeva and Lotte can achieve something special.” His confidence paid off as Squiban delivered the fastest time, pushing De Jong to fourth.
Explaining her approach to the time trial, Squiban said, “The first part was fast, so it was important to start well but not too hard. The second part was uphill, and I had to stay focused, saving some energy for the last four flat kilometres where I went all out.”
Her team remains a strong contender overall, with Claes holding third in the general classification and Valentina Cavallar in sixth. Squiban praised her teammates, saying, “Lotte and Valentina have shown they’re very strong in the mountains. We’ll see in the briefing who leads us for Mont Lozère.”
After a busy summer, which included a second-place finish on a stage of the Tour de France Femmes, Squiban feels in good form. “I didn’t have much rest after the Tour because of Plouay, but it’s good to stay in the rhythm. I came to Ardèche without much specific training, but I was keen to do well.”
2024 Tour de l’Ardeche Stage 3 result
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