Caisse d'Epargne recruits Jeannesson

By Jean-François Quénet in Varese, Italy

While Eusebio Unzue, the manager of Caisse d'Epargne team, has expressed his interest in Alberto Contador, they have signed a new rider in the person of Arnold Jeannesson, a Frenchman from Continental team Auber 93. The 22-year-old showed his climbing abilities as he won the hardest stage of the recent Tour de l'Avenir in Guzet-Neige in the Pyrénées.

His solo action has caught the eyes of many observers, among which the staff of Bouygues Telecom who are Jeannesson's neighbours in Vendée in the west of France.

Jeannesson also finished third overall in the Tour de l'Avenir won by Jan Bakelants from Belgium. With a mountain-bike background as a teenager, he switched to road racing with the amateur club of CM Aubervilliers near Paris and he has now completed his first pro season with Auber 93. At Caisse d'Epargne for the next two years, he’ll replace another Frenchman, Fabien Patanchon.