Paul Seixas remains the favorite, but the yellow jersey is still held by another Frenchman, Maxime Decomble, on the eve of the final stage of the Tour de l’Avenir.
And the magnificent victory of the diminutive Belgian climber Jarno Widar in Tignes 2100 at the end of a grueling Alpine stage that brought together the world’s best U23 riders right up to the last kilometer has created total suspense ahead of the final day, a busy day featuring a (very) early, ultra-selective road stage through the Aosta Valley and an afternoon hill climb time trial for the finale in La Rosière, a resort in Haute Tarentaise that has become a major venue for the event.
Almost all the favorites are within fifteen seconds of each other, with Paul Seixas in second place overall and Ecuadorian featherweight Mateo Pablo Ramirez in sixth, along with Italy’s Lorenzo Mark Finn (third), Norway’s Jörgen Nordhagen (fourth), and Belgium’s Jarno Widar (fifth) all gathered within this ultra-tight time range.
This means that nothing is decided yet, but for now, Maxime Decomble has every reason to believe in his chances. “Wearing the yellow jersey on the eve of the finish is extraordinary,” said the Frenchman, adding that he was “in the form of his life.”
Maxime Decomble played a key role in the climb to Tignes. He initially held his own against the pressure exerted by the Belgian team in favor of Jarno Widar, who rewarded his teammates handsomely. But just when he could have started to ease off to preserve his lead, Maxime Decomble played the game perfectly and respected the French team’s overall strategy by personally putting Paul Seixas on track. The great French hope did indeed emerge, but without being able to shake off Jarno Widar or even avoid the comeback of the other favorites, except for Spain’s Pablo Torres, who attacked on the Cormet de Roselend but ultimately fell short of what his performance last year on the Col delle Finestre, where he made up nearly four minutes (finishing second, 12 seconds behind England’s Joseph Blackmore).
In short, Paul Seixas was one of the best, but not so superior as to break away, and so he was only a few seconds ahead of his main rivals for the overall victory.
The grueling San Marco climb, tackled cold after 36 km of “fictitious” riding to cross the Petit-Saint Bernard in the early morning of the last day, forces each of the protagonists to battle it out before the final time trial (10.3 km) uphill to La Rosière. This is not a bad outcome for the current leader, Maxime Decomble, who remains a credible contender for victory even though his lead has been cut by more than half. Fifty-one seconds now separate the two Frenchmen who occupy the top spots in the overall standings.
The same program awaits the competitors in the Tour de l’Avenir women’s race, who are resting on Thursday, with Canada’s Isabella Holmgren wearing the yellow jersey since the prologue.
