“I’m exhausted! I’m glad it’s over,” said Pier-André Côté (Human Powered Health) a few minutes after the sixth and final stage of the 4 Days of Dunkirk where he once again supported his Dutch teammate Arvid De Kleijn.
Posted at 3:16 p.m.
“It was far from being the easiest stage, the wind mingled with the game today [dimanche]. The start was fast and a small group got away, but we were able to catch them just before entering the final circuit where we had to do the 9 kilometer loop eight times. It was exhausting! mentioned Côté.
“My legs were completely dead after the race, it was very intense,” he added.
De Kleijn finally took the 17and rank of the day as the event was won by the Belgian Gerben Thijssen (Intermarché – Wanty – Gobert Matériaux). The French Hugo Hofstetter (Arkéa Samsic) and Lorrenzo Manzin (Total Energies) completed the top-3.
“We knew it was going to be difficult on the final circuit to put Arvid up front, there really wasn’t a lot of space. We were a little short for him to have a chance in the sprint, but I think we did a good job overall,” explained the 25-year-old athlete.
Côté, meanwhile, finished the race at 42and level, within the leading group. This result allows him to climb two places in the general classification to finish the 4 Days of Dunkirk in 15and square.
“It’s a nice little bonus to get a good ranking like that overall. I knew that if I did well in the fifth stage, I was going to be able to have a good result. It’s not amazing and brilliant, but it’s not bad and it confirms my consistency on the circuit,” concluded Côté.
Olivia Baril champion in Spain
Olivia Baril (Valcar – Travel & Service) won the Grand Prix of the city of Eibar (1.1) in Spain on a route she knew like the back of her hand, she who has already lived in Mendaro, about ten kilometers from Eibar.
“I am really happy with this victory. My team worked really hard for me so I’m very grateful to them. My sporting director said before the race that he was not coming for a second place. I love racing so much in the Basque Country, it gives me even more strength”, she commented proudly after her victory.
Baril triumphed in the sprint ahead of the Spaniards Ane Santesteban (BikeExchange – Jayco) and Mavi Garcia (UAE ADQ). Croatian Jelena Eric (Movistar) also finished in the lead group.