Laurent Pichon: ‘We saw a determined team’.

Race reportMar 10, 2025

World Team TeamParis - Nice

The second stage of Paris - Nice, between Montesson and Bellegarde (183.9km), once again ended in a sprint. Arnaud Démare finished 7th. Florian Sénéchal, caught up in a crash with 40km to go, was forced to retire.

Arnaud Démare

With 40 km to go, we lost Florian Sénéchal in a crash. It was a difficult time. Very quickly, we had to get back into the swing of things. I knew we had to be patient and still be in the lead. The ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team did a good job. In the final, we were overtaken on the right. I caught up with Axel Zingle (Team Visma I Lease a Bike). I waited because I felt I couldn't sprint too long. Just as I'm about to start, it starts on my right. I'm a bit embarrassed... It's frustrating because when I launch, I'm blocked.

Laurent Pichon

Sport director

It was a big blow to lose Florian Sénéchal in a crash, who is an important element for Arnaud Démare. He's his last pitcher and his retirement thwarted our plans. Arnaud was also caught up in the crash, but it wasn't serious for him. We lose energy in these race situations. The riders in the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team rallied and we were able to avoid the crashes that occurred at the end of the race. It's particular to find the right timing on a 6 km home straight. The guys were there. Arnaud found himself on his own a bit too early on and he got a bit locked in at the end. We saw a determined team. On Tuesday, we've got a good team time trial for Ewen Costiou and Raúl García Perna with a view to the overall classification. Our thoughts are with Florian.

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