course, favorites, prediction… focus on the online race of the French championships

Find the profile and favorites expected in the men’s road race which will go from Avranches to the surroundings of Mont Saint Michel, Sunday in Normandy.

After Vendée and Hauts-de-France, it is in Normandy, within the Manche department, that the events of the 2024 French road cycling championships are held. In addition to the cyclocross events, or the two time trials, the one that will be most followed by observers is undoubtedly the Men’s road race. Analysis of the 2024 edition scheduled for this Sunday.

A typically Norman route

It is in this corner steeped in history and very imposing, from Avranches to Mont Saint-Michel via the Normandy coast, that the runners will start a 240 kilometer race. The start will be from Place Littré in Avranches. The peloton will cover 27 km before embarking on thirteen laps of a 16 km circuit before arriving at the village of Saint Martin de Landelles, for a course similar to the Polynormande, a traditional Coupe de France event (August 11). A real championship race awaits the contenders for the legendary blue-white-red jersey, with a course littered with bumps. Within these difficulties, repeated thirteen times by the peloton, we should note the Côte de la Vallée (800m at 8% elevation), the Côte du Pigeonnier (500m at 6%) and the Côte des Biards (700m at 5 %).

A succession of small bumps awaits the runners this Sunday in Normandy. The Red Flame

An event designed for punchers

The repetition of these bumps, which may recall the Italian bumps which crowned Julian Alaphilippe at the 2020 Worlds, therefore makes the course very attractive for French punchers. Among them, how can we not mention the puncher of the Decathlon AG2R team, Benoit Cosnefroy, regional of the stage, winner in particular of the Polynormande in 2019. The French runner, winner earlier in the season of the Flèche Brabançonne, is in form, and aims for final victory. It is also worth mentioning the title holder, Valentin Madouas, who is also comfortable on this type of course, or the young Axel Laurance and Axel Zingle, great hopes of the discipline. Finally, let’s not forget the riders who will not fail to seize their chance if it presents itself, like Julian Alaphilippe or the European champion Christophe Laporte, in dress rehearsal before the Tour de France with the Jumbo-Visma.

Read also Cycling: Armirail French time trial champion for three seconds

The big odds: Bryan Coquard

The “Rooster” on its way? Two weeks after having (finally) found success in the Tour de Suisse, the Cofidis sprinter has found color again. If he is more likely to raise his arms after a sprint, seeing him triumph on the roads of Normandy would not be so trivial. The veteran sprinter (32 years old) therefore regained confidence on the other side of the Alps, where he signed his second World Tour victory at the end of an otherwise rugged journey. This renewed form could give him wings to adorn himself with the tricolor tunic, he subscribed to the runners-up, like in 2020, where he finished behind the inevitable Arnaud Démare.

On the 2nd stage of the Tour de Suisse, Bryan Coquard regained victory by winning in front of two big customers, the Australian Michael Matthews and the Belgian Arnaud De Lie. Jan De Meuleneir / Photo News / Panoramic