Paris-Nice: triple the Jumbo-Visma, Christophe Laporte wins the first stage ahead of Primoz Roglic and Wout Van Aert
The French offered his first victory on the World Tour circuit on Sunday and took the yellow jersey.
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Not everything went as planned for the sprinters. While we thought that the first stage of this 80th edition of Paris-Nice was promised to them, the Jumbo-Visma decided otherwise and it was Christophe Laporte who won in Mantes-la-Ville, Sunday March 6 , ahead of his two teammates Primoz Roglic and Wout Van Aert.
A coup de force carried out just over six kilometers from the finish in the cMountain of Breuil-Bois-Robert, classified in third category and not necessarily difficult on paper. But the Jumbo-Visma outdistanced everyone by printing a hell of a train to allow three of its men to escape and never be caught again.
Before that, a breakaway had formed from the fifth kilometer with Aimé De Gendt (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert) and Matthew Holmes (Lotto-Soudal). With a maximum lead of just over three minutes, the fugitives never managed to get away and were caught more than 70 kilometers from the finish.
Something to give ideas to those who had missed the mark at the end of the morning. Frederik Frison (Lotto-Soudal) tried his luck alone 46 kilometers from the finish before being joined by Yevgeniy Fedorov (Astana Qazaqstan Team) and Alexis Gougeard (B&B Hôtels-KTM). A breakaway once again caught up 12 kilometers from the finish by the peloton led by the Jumbo-Visma, which tried to edge by accelerating on the flat and created breaks, but the favorites managed to hang on.
Primoz Roglic’s formation then continued to press and blasted the peloton into the ccoast of Breuil-Bois-Robert. Three Yellow and Black escaped and took a good twenty second lead. Wout Van Aert and Primoz Roglic then left the victory to Christophe Laporte, the great architect of this coup. In the bonus game, the Slovenian is therefore 28 seconds ahead of the rest of the favorites and strikes a blow on this 80th edition of Paris-Nice.
A stage also marked by the first retirement in this Race to the sun with the fall of Félix Großsschartner, the Bora-Hansgroe rider and teammate of double title holder Maximilian Schachmann. A blow for the German in his quest for a new title in Paris-Nice.
