Tony Gallopin, winner of Paris-Tours Espoirs 2008© A.S.O.
The great sprint festival will witness a few changes this year on the elite race but also the events for young riders.
And now… Chartres
The race remained on its initial course from 1896 to 1973 before witnessing several changes both concerning the start and finish towns. After Tours-Versailles, the “dead leaf race” was held between Blois and Montlhéry, and then between Blois and Chaville, Créteil and Chaville, before returning in 1988 to a finish in the Indre-et-Loire area. Since 1994, the pack took off from Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, but this year the riders are expected in Chartres for the traditional podium signature ceremony. The starts of the next four editions will actually take place in a town of the Eure-et-Loir area.
A team classification for “the kilometre”
While the champions head to Tours, a real keirin track type tournament will take place on the final kilometre of the course. The cadets and juniors taking part were chosen in their regional and area comities. Series will be organised with an average of six riders, then semi-finals and two finals crowning the winners by class. For the 15th edition of this meeting made to find new talents, an innovation was added: indeed a team classification will be set up by adding the places of the 4 riders (2 cadets + 2 juniors) of each team.
A Tour de France street in Bonneval
The under-23-year-old riders also have quite some appetite at the end of the season. The best ones will take off from Bonneval, like since 1994, for a 179 kilometre course. The town doubly shows its interest for cycling by also unveiling on Saturday morning a Tour de France street and a Bernard Hinault pedestrian bridge! This year, 36 teams of 5 riders are expected. In the pack, the battle normally reaches its maximum intensity on the final straight. Among the past winners are the likes of Thor Hushovd and Tom Boonen, two Tour de France Green Jerseys who have actually never won the elite race.
Philippe Gilbert© Presse Sports
The opportunities are no longer numerous to capture a prestige victory. There will however be one on the road that will take the pack from Chartres to Tours on Sunday the 11th of October. With Paris-Tours, the leaders hoping to hit back will be able to battle it out for a title that could make their 2009 season a fine one.
Recent history shows that the traditional bunched finish on the Avenue de Grammont is often troubled by strong attackers in the final kilometres. Title holder Philippe Gilbert, a bit too used to secondary places this season, could find the inspiration in a final part that he managed to master in 2008. But alike him, some top class punchers will certainly be up front alongside the Belgian at the decisive moment: Alejandro Valverde, winner of the Vuelta, Samuel Sanchez, Olympic champion in Beijing, Frédéric Guesdon, winner in 2006, Alessandro Ballan, 2008 World champion, Sylvain Chavanel, Filippo Pozzato or Edvald Boasson Hagen will be men to watch.
The sprinters teams will have to control all that energy to organise an explanation between specialists of the final straight. If such is the case, Tom Boonen and Oscar Freire could have a chance of adding Paris-Tours on their already impressive CV. Tyler Farrar and Gerald Ciolek, as well as French riders Jimmy Casper, Romain Feillu and Sébastien Chavanel, will be there to make their battle even more difficult.
Albéric de Montgolfier, Chairman of the General Council of Eure-et-Loir and Christian Prudhomme, Director of the Tour de France, have presented on Wednesday, September 9th, the main lines of the 103rd edition of the race Paris-Tours to the media, in the Senat building in Paris. A four year partnership on the event is running between the General Council of Eure-et-Loir and A.S.O.. The Autumn Classic will take place from Chartres next October 11th.
Each year the wind and autumn leaves gradually lead us towards the end of the season classic, the Paris-Tours. The major change for the 103rd edition sees the race begin in the hotbed of French cycling, the Eure-et-Loir region. For the past 16 years the region has hosted the start of the Pairs-Tour Espoirs event and has also see the Tour de France (1999 and 2004), Paris-Nice (2007) and the 2009 Tour de l’Avenir, which kicked off at Dreux this past September 5th, pass through. The 25 teams entered will have the honour of starting from the shadows of the emblematic Chartres Cathedral, which is on the list of UNESCO Heritage Sites.
This new start conditions a change to the start of the route and the distance (230 kilometres in 2009 compared to 252 in 2008). The riders will ride the traditional route at Bonneval before heading on to the famous Grammont Avenue and its majestic 2500 metre long straight. Each year the teams working for their sprinters take over at Tours in a race that rarely slips through their fingers. Nevertheless, finishers, like 2008 winner Philippe Gilbert can’t be overlooked. However, sport does offer surprises from time to time and the Paris-Tours is no exception and could reward a daring breakaway attempt as was the case in 2001 with Richard Virenque.
The fall classic also offers a fantastic opportunity for the Paris-Tours Espoirs (30 teams of 6 riders, as well as the Kilomètre de Paris-Tours, a popular event to detect young cadet and junior sprinters, who are racing regionally this year. This is an occasion for everyone to win on the Alpe d’Huez of sprint races.
The 25 teams selected
GERMANY UNITED STATES
| FRANCE BBox Bouygues Telecom (BTL) Besson Chaussures-Sojasun (BCS) Bretagne-Schuller (BSC)
Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team (VAC)
RUSSIA |
Philippe Gilbert bid a perfect farewell to his Francaise des Jeux team when he won his greatest victory to date in the 102nd Paris-Tours.
The Belgian, who moves to Silence-Lotto next season, outwitted other favourites in a nail-biting finale to lead a Belgian one-two ahead of compatriot Jan Kuyckx (Landbouwkrediet).
France’s Sebastien Turgot was third in an edition in which sprinters were prevented from battling it out on the famous avenue de Grammont.
In the final kilometers, Gilbert managed to join a four-man break launched 15 kms from the line by French champion Nicolas Vogondy, who finished fourth.
The Verviers-born Gilbert, 26, had great wins behind him, notably two Het Volks, but this crowns six great seasons with Marc Madiot for the Belgian.