Ferrier Bruneau wins alone
Longo second, De Saint Jean third
Christel Ferrier-Bruneau (Gauss) claimed the French national road race title in Boulogne-Sur-Mer, denying veteran Jeannie Longo her 59th title on a cold and rainy day.
Ferrier-Bruneau jumped away on a steep climb in the final 500m of the 109.6km race, leaving Longo behind. Magdalena de Saint Jean took the third spot from the three-rider breakaway.
The final lap was rife with attacks, with Ferrier-Bruneau and Longo each having a go, but the trio came together under the red kite to battle it out in the tough finale.
"I tried to attack on the first climb, but they came back," Ferrier-Bruneau said. "I thought I had to be careful because Longo is strong and has a lot of experience. The wall before the finish suited me and I gave it everything there."
Longo said she wasn't confident for the finish against the superior speed of Ferrier-Bruneau. "Tactically, I was positioned wrong because I found myself at the front in the final corner. I wanted to do what Christel did: to put in an attack from behind.
"Christel had a great race, It's good that she has the jersey."
A cold rain in the morning soaked the Boulogne-Sur-Mer course, making the early part of the race a nervous affair. It wasn't until the mid-point of the race that an attack finally went clear, with Joanne Duval gaining a maximum lead of 3:10 over the course of the next two laps.
With three to go, the chase began in earnest and Duval's lead slipped away as the furious pace broke the peloton to pieces behind.
Three strong women: St. Jean, Longo and Ferrier-Bruneau made the juncture to the fading Duval with two laps to go, and the escapee could not hold onto the trio's pace for long.
The three would go on to fight out the podium places, while Duval was joined by her teammate Beatrice Thomas to hold onto fourth.
1 | Christel Ferrier Bruneau | 3:26:11 |
2 | Jeannie Longo | 0:00:12 |
3 | Magdalena De Saint Jean | 0:00:18 |
4 | Joanne Duval | 0:04:12 |
5 | Beatrice Thomas | Row 4 - Cell 2 |
6 | Julie Krasniak | 0:05:10 |
7 | Melanie Bravard | 0:07:15 |
8 | Emilie Blanquefort | Row 7 - Cell 2 |
9 | Emmanuelle Merlot | Row 8 - Cell 2 |
10 | Nathalie Jeuland | 0:07:29 |
11 | Marie Laure | 0:07:31 |
12 | Audrey Cordon | 0:09:08 |
13 | Amelie Rivat | Row 12 - Cell 2 |
14 | Pauline Ferrand Prevot | Row 13 - Cell 2 |
15 | Elodie Hegoburu | Row 14 - Cell 2 |
16 | Marion Rousse | Row 15 - Cell 2 |
17 | Aurore Verhoeven | 0:09:13 |
18 | Marion Azam | 0:09:14 |
19 | Eugénie Mermillod | Row 18 - Cell 2 |
20 | Margot Ortega | 0:09:20 |
21 | Céline Schuller | 0:09:30 |
22 | Aodez Le Fourn | Row 21 - Cell 2 |
23 | Julie Bresset | Row 22 - Cell 2 |
24 | Marlene Petit | 0:09:39 |
25 | Mélodie Lesueur | 0:09:42 |
26 | Steffi Jamoneau | 0:12:32 |
27 | Céline Wittek | 0:12:36 |
28 | Charlotte Bravard | 0:13:02 |
29 | Oriane Niay | 0:13:19 |
30 | Louise Blot | 0:14:48 |
31 | Vicky Fournial | Row 30 - Cell 2 |
32 | Fanny Riberot | Row 31 - Cell 2 |
33 | Nathalie Cadol | 0:14:52 |
34 | Aurelie Bramante | 0:15:03 |
35 | Marion Sicot | 0:15:04 |
36 | Sandrine Baldassarre | 0:15:07 |
37 | Angelique Goron | Row 36 - Cell 2 |
38 | Lise Dodement | 0:15:08 |
39 | Justine Macret | 0:15:10 |
40 | Cynthia Huygens | 0:15:19 |
DNF | Audrey Gascon | Row 40 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Nadege Prudhomme | Row 41 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Cindy Morvan | Row 42 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Delphine Rousseau | Row 43 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Melanie Briot | Row 44 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Camille Darcel | Row 45 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alessia Bugeia | Row 46 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Sarah Thibaud | Row 47 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Lucie Pader | Row 48 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Elodie Le Bail | Row 49 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Veronique Paillard | Row 50 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Sylvie Gaillon | Row 51 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alexia Muffat | Row 52 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Edwige Pitel | Row 53 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Florence Girardet | Row 54 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jennifer Mark | Row 55 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Sandra Dos Santos | Row 56 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Stephanie Viel | Row 57 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Sandrine Bideau | Row 58 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Ludivine Loze | Row 59 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Alna Burato | Row 60 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Clotilde Lefort | Row 61 - Cell 2 |
DNF | Jénifer Letue | Row 62 - Cell 2 |
Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*
Join now for unlimited access
Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets
After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59
Join now for unlimited access
Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1
Get The Leadout Newsletter
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Rooijakkers surprised with 6th place in Flèche Wallonne after attacking race
Fenix-Deceuninck rider targets podium in Liège-Bastogne-Liège -
Liège-Bastogne-Liège 2024 - Analysing the contenders
Tadej Pogačar, Mathieu van der Poel, Demi Vollering and Elisa Longo Borghini battle in final event of this spring's Ardennes Classics -
Assos Equipe RS Jersey S11 review: Continuing to set the standard
Shouldn’t your race-ready jersey also have great pockets and a stay-put waistline? -
Decluttering mass starts, rewarding podium riders top changes to 2024 Life Time Grand Prix
Life Time marketing director talks about creating 'fandom' for cycling with more real-time race content, but live streaming on hold