(Montreal) Heavy falls marked the end of the first stage of the 4 days of Dunkirk, Tuesday, in France. Second to cross the finish line, the Dutchman Arvid De Kleijn, teammate of Pier-André Côté at Human Powered Health, inherited the victory after the downgrading of the Australian Sam Welsford (DSM).
Posted at 2:36 p.m.
There were only about 50 meters to go when the Belgian Arnaud De Lie, of the Lotto Soudal team, played boldly at the head of this bunch sprint trying to make his way between Dan McLay (Arkéa Samsic) and Welsford. The latter went slightly out of his trajectory to his left and came into contact with De Lie, which caused the fall of several runners afterwards.
Behind, Pier-André Côté managed to avoid the worst and was 14and to complete the course.
“I think I had a guardian angel at the very end! You can see me crossing the line at almost 1 km / h, I had to do the last 100 meters just by braking and zigzagging between bikes flying around me, ”said the Quebecer, delighted to be there. emerged unscathed and to see his teammate triumph.
“We did the work for Arvid, but we are far from giving him the perfect approach, it was so chaotic! ” he added.
The 161 kilometer stage, contested between Dunkirk and Aniche, ended with a false descending flat, including a bend to the left, then a road which became increasingly narrow over 1.5 kilometers.
This is Arvid de Kleijn’s first victory this season. No less than 118 cyclists finished in the same time as the winner. Penalized after the race, Sam Welsford brings up the rear of this peloton.
“Arvid was the strongest today (Tuesday). You see it in the way he comes back into the wheels with more speed than the guys around him. We placed it as we could, but it was difficult to position it perfectly. Our execution wasn’t perfect and despite that, Arvid is present and fast, so it’s really motivating for the rest of the week. »
Such a result confirms the apprehensions of the Human Powered Health training which had targeted four stages, including that of Tuesday, which could be played out in a massive sprint. Pier-André Côté will try to lead his teammate to other victories over the next few days and believes he has the necessary tools to achieve this.
“We have confirmation that Arvid has superb legs and is able to deliver. Personally, I felt really good and I will try to do the best job I can to support it. Even more than today, because I ran a bit to catch up and I had trouble reaching him in the last kilometer,” continued the winner of the Grand Prix Criquielion, last March.
“150 meters from the line, it was too late to help him as much as I would have liked, but I have the legs to do this job. »
The 4-day Dunkirk race – which has retained its original name, even though it now takes place over six days – will resume on Wednesday with a 181.5 kilometer stage, between Béthune and Maubeuge.