Christophe Laporte took stage one and the overall lead of the Étoile de Bessèges ahead of French rival, Nacer Bouhanni with Mads Pedersen taking third in a rapid finale that saw a large crash take several riders out of the challenge for the win.
Laporte (Cofidis) followed a late attack by Bouhanni (Arkéa-Samsic), pulling away from the rest of the peloton who could do nothing to pull back the French sprinters.
Results
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VanMoof e-bikes back on sale in UK with promise of 'more reliable' modelsThe Dutch brand went bust last summer, but is now back with improved S5 and A5 and a new repair system
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Amateur cyclist breaks Strava KOMs on Mortirolo and Stelvio, makes plea for pro contract'Let's hope some kind of opportunity comes from this,' said Canadian Jack Burke, after taking the Mortirolo crown
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'We'll continue fighting for stages': Buoyant Cofidis target yet more Tour de France successThe French team claim their second victory of this year's race, well and truly ending their status as the Tour's whipping boys
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Simon Geschke: The most under the radar rider of the year?The German Cofidis rider came third at the Tour de Romandie and almost won the mountains jersey at the Tour de France
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‘It’s always the same, the rider who wins the Tour, no one believes it’: Christophe Laporte says nothing changes with suspicion in cyclingLaporte won stage 19 at the Tour de France but says some are still quick to doubt his progress
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The Giro Donne starts on Monday for German climber KoppenburgThe Cofidis rider is looking to banish nerves after returning from a serious crash at last year’s race
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Belgian pro criticises Elia Viviani's lead-out after he was 'sandwiched' in sprintThe Belgian came out of Viviani's wheel late to dart for the line but had to brake to avoid Consonni
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Elia Viviani leaves Cofidis training camp due to heart concerns, according to reportElia Viviani has reportedly left the Cofidis winter training camp due to heart concerns, according to Italian media.
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French WorldTour team Cofidis set to launch women's team in 2022Cofidis announce that they will be launching a women's team in 2022 to go alongside their WorldTour and Paracycling teams
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‘I’m not naive, I couldn’t say the whole peloton is clean,’ says Guillaume MartinGuillaume Martin couldn’t say the whole peloton is clean after the Tour de France 2020.
