Route du Sud: Soler wins stage 4 atop Val d'Azun Couraduque

Marc Soler (Movistar) celebrates his stage win

Marc Soler (Movistar) celebrates his stage win (Image credit: La Route du Sud)

Marc Soler (Movistar) used a late attack to solo to the stage 4 win Saturday at the Route du Sud, just holding off an impressive chase from Hugh Carthy (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA), who had race leader Nairo Quintana in tow. Carthy got within four seconds of Soler at the line, where Quintana jumped past the British rider to claim second and maintain his overall race lead. Carthy finished third.

The win is the first professional victory for 22-year-old Soler, whose aggression in the final climb whittled the lead group down to just himself, Quintana, Carthy, Nicolas Edet (Cofidis) and Thomas Voeckler (Direct Energie). Soler jumped away again with two kilometres remaining, and this time only Carthy and Quintana could follow. 

"I'm really happy with how things have evolved and even more with claiming my first win against the pros in such a beautiful way, after a huge day from the whole squad," said Soler, who had been in an earlier breakaway but chose to sit up and wait for the main peloton that include his team leader.

"We followed Chente's instructions practically until the very end, and it all turned out well at the finish," he said. "This victory goes to my palmarès, but the whole team worked their hearts out to ensure that we fulfilled the goals. Back in Dauphiné, I was feeling like the whole from the past few weeks had been correct, but the wear and tear of the race was a bit too much for me - I really found better legs this weekend at the Route du Sud."

Quintana and Soler are now first and second in the general classification, with Carthy moving to third overall, 58 seconds behind Quintana, who also praised the entire team's effort on the stage.

"Our race today was textbook stuff, just like we had planned it in the morning; things went just like we wanted to," he said. "Our idea into the Couraduque climb was trying a move by myself and seeking for that stage win, but once we saw Marc was doing that really well, at some point he told me if he could go forward, and I said to him it was good to attack.

"It's good to share these moments of joy and excitement with the guys; they all deserve to feel like a winner, even if it's only for one day," Quintana said. "They work so hard throughout the season so riders like me can enjoy success, and these wins make them grow, especially the youngsters who are coming behind us. My legs felt well; there wasn't any need to make further efforts and the day went perfectly. Let's just hope for a calm stage tomorrow, as it always worries one when you've got to face a circuit race, with the road furniture, the stress... I just can't wait to celebrate with the guys."

Sunday's closing stage is an eight-lap circuit in and around Clermont-Pouyguillès, 154km including eight climbs of the category 3 Côte de Moncassin.

Full Results

Swipe to scroll horizontally
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar Team5:36:13
2Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team0:00:04
3Hugh Carthy (GBr) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 2 - Cell 2
4Nicolas Edet (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:00:17
5Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Direct Energie0:00:21
6Sergio Pardilla Bellon (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:33
7Ricardo Vilela (Por) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:55
8Mikel Bizkarra (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:00:57
9Luis Angel Mate Mardones (Spa) Cofidis, Solutions CreditsRow 8 - Cell 2
10David Arroyo Duran (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:01:25
11Mikel Iturria Segurola (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:01:33
12Stéphane Rossetto (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:01:37
13Artem Nych (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:01:45
14Guillaume Levarlet (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 930:02:09
15Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Movistar TeamRow 14 - Cell 2
16Delio Fernandez Cruz (Spa) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:02:17
17Dayer Uberney Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team0:02:53
18Garikoitz Bravo Oiarbide (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - MuriasRow 17 - Cell 2
19Frederico Figueiredo (Por) Radio Popular - Boavista0:03:47
20Arnold Jeannesson (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:03:59
21Eduardo Sepulveda (Arg) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:05:49
22Daniel Martínez (Col) Willier Trestina0:06:27
23Yoann Barbas (Fra) Armee de Terre0:08:21
24Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Direct EnergieRow 23 - Cell 2
25José Herrada Lopez (Spa) Movistar Team0:08:40
26Mads Pedersen (Den) Stˆlting Service Group0:09:54
27Biel Kadri (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:10:20
28Yoann Offredo (Fra) FDJRow 27 - Cell 2
29Axel Domont (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 28 - Cell 2
30Guillaume Bonnafond (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 29 - Cell 2
31François Bidard (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 30 - Cell 2
32Aleksey Rybalkin (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 31 - Cell 2
33Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:15:00
34Julien Loubet (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:15:09
35Jonathan Lastra Martinez (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:15:28
36Matteo Busato (Ita) Willier Trestina0:17:56
37Pablo Guerrero Bonilla (Spa) Radio Popular - BoavistaRow 36 - Cell 2
38Romain Hardy (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:21:13
39Benoît Vaugrenard (Fra) FDJRow 38 - Cell 2
40Quentin Pacher (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:21:31
41Lilian Calmejane (Fra) Direct Energie0:23:59
42Yann Guyot (Fra) Armee de Terre0:24:11
43Romain Combaud (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:25:04
44Christian Mager (Ger) Stˆlting Service Group0:25:12
45Cristian Rodriguez Martin (Spa) Willier Trestina0:25:37
46Vegard Breen (Nor) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:25:47
47Benat Txoperena Matxikote (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:26:03
48Alex Aranburu (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:26:47
49Luis Mas Bonet (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 48 - Cell 2
50Olivier Le Gac (Fra) FDJ0:27:10
51Mickael Delage (Fra) FDJRow 50 - Cell 2
52Thierry Hupond (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 51 - Cell 2
53Victor Etxebarria Carrasco (Spa) Radio Popular - BoavistaRow 52 - Cell 2
54Jerome Cousin (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions CreditsRow 53 - Cell 2
55Pierre Gouault (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 93Row 54 - Cell 2
56Christophe Laborie (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 55 - Cell 2
57Julien El Fares (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 56 - Cell 2
58Jerome Mainard (Fra) Armee de TerreRow 57 - Cell 2
59Julien Berard (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 58 - Cell 2
60Michael Reihs (Den) Stˆlting Service GroupRow 59 - Cell 2
61Théo Vimpere (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 93Row 60 - Cell 2
62Rémy Di Gregorio (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTMRow 61 - Cell 2
63Thomas Koep (Ger) Stˆlting Service GroupRow 62 - Cell 2
64Sergey Firsanov (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 63 - Cell 2
65Rory Sutherland (Aus) Movistar TeamRow 64 - Cell 2
66Imanol Erviti (Spa) Movistar TeamRow 65 - Cell 2
67Lorenzo Manzin (Fra) FDJRow 66 - Cell 2
68Aritz Bagües (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - MuriasRow 67 - Cell 2
69Nico Denz (Ger) AG2R La MondialeRow 68 - Cell 2
70Arnaud Gerard (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital ConceptRow 69 - Cell 2
71Anthony Delaplace (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital ConceptRow 70 - Cell 2
72Viktor Manakov (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 71 - Cell 2
73Aitor Gonzalez (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - MuriasRow 72 - Cell 2
74Francis Mourey (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital ConceptRow 73 - Cell 2
75Angelo Tulik (Fra) Direct EnergieRow 74 - Cell 2
76Alexander Kamp (Den) Stˆlting Service Group0:27:52
77Carlos Barbero Cuesta (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:29:21
78Loïc Chetout (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions CreditsRow 77 - Cell 2
79Flavien Dassonville (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 930:29:46
80Romain Le Roux (Fra) Armee de Terre0:30:06
81Imanol Estevez (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:30:18
82Yohann Gene (Fra) Direct Energie0:31:28
83Igor Boev (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:31:37
84Guillaume De Almeida (Fra) Radio Popular - Boavista0:32:05
85Yannick Martinez (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:32:16
86David Miguel Costa Rodrigues (Por) Radio Popular - Boavista0:32:20
87Ricardo Ferreira (Por) Radio Popular - BoavistaRow 86 - Cell 2
88Manuel Belletti (Ita) Willier Trestina0:32:24
89Julien Duval (Fra) Armee de Terre0:32:44
90Bruno Armirail (Fra) Armee de TerreRow 89 - Cell 2
91Stéphane Poulhies (Fra) Armee de Terre0:33:12
92Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ0:33:22
93Matteo Draperi (Ita) Willier Trestina0:34:25
94Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 93 - Cell 2
95Mamyr Stash (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:36:43
DNFJavier Moreno Bazan (Spa) Movistar TeamRow 95 - Cell 2
DNFMaxime Daniel (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 96 - Cell 2
DNFYoann Bagot (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions CreditsRow 97 - Cell 2
DNFAntonio Molina (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGARow 98 - Cell 2
DNFBryan Coquard (Fra) Direct EnergieRow 99 - Cell 2
DNFThomas Boudat (Fra) Direct EnergieRow 100 - Cell 2
DNFAdrien Petit (Fra) Direct EnergieRow 101 - Cell 2
DNFMarc Sarreau (Fra) FDJRow 102 - Cell 2
DNFDaniel Mclay (GBr) Fortuneo - Vital ConceptRow 103 - Cell 2
DNFSamuele Conti (Ita) Willier TrestinaRow 104 - Cell 2
DNFGiuseppe Fonzi (Ita) Willier TrestinaRow 105 - Cell 2
DNFEnrique Sanz (Spa) Willier TrestinaRow 106 - Cell 2
DNFRomain Lemarchand (Fra) Stˆlting Service GroupRow 107 - Cell 2
DNFAlexander Serov (Rus) Gazprom-RusveloRow 108 - Cell 2
DNFJulien Guay (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 93Row 109 - Cell 2
DNFAnthony Maldonado (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 93Row 110 - Cell 2
DNFDavid Menut (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 93Row 111 - Cell 2
DNSClément Penven (Fra) Armee de TerreRow 112 - Cell 2
Swipe to scroll horizontally
General Classification after stage 4
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team12:52:55
2Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar Team0:00:36
3Hugh Carthy (GBr) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:00:58
4Nicolas Edet (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:01:06
5Thomas Voeckler (Fra) Direct Energie0:01:15
6Sergio Pardilla Bellon (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:01:55
7Ricardo Vilela (Por) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:02:01
8Mikel Bizkarra (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:02:12
9Stéphane Rossetto (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:02:20
10Luis Angel Mate Mardones (Spa) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:02:36
11Artem Nych (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:02:38
12Mikel Iturria Segurola (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:03:06
13Jose Joaquin Rojas Gil (Spa) Movistar Team0:03:12
14David Arroyo Duran (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:03:14
15Delio Fernandez Cruz (Spa) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:03:38
16Guillaume Levarlet (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 930:03:55
17Garikoitz Bravo Oiarbide (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:04:10
18Dayer Uberney Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team0:04:32
19Frederico Figueiredo (Por) Radio Popular - Boavista0:05:35
20Arnold Jeannesson (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:05:41
21Eduardo Sepulveda (Arg) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:06:25
22Daniel Martínez (Col) Willier Trestina0:07:20
23Sylvain Chavanel (Fra) Direct Energie0:08:34
24José Herrada Lopez (Spa) Movistar Team0:09:35
25Yoann Barbas (Fra) Armee de Terre0:10:45
26Yoann Offredo (Fra) FDJ0:11:31
27Axel Domont (Fra) AG2R La MondialeRow 26 - Cell 2
28François Bidard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:11:59
29Guillaume Bonnafond (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:12:48
30Biel Kadri (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:13:00
31Mads Pedersen (Den) Stˆlting Service Group0:14:03
32Aleksey Rybalkin (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:14:22
33Julien Loubet (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:16:06
34Jonathan Lastra Martinez (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:16:45
35Pierrick Fedrigo (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:18:24
36Matteo Busato (Ita) Willier Trestina0:19:05
37Pablo Guerrero Bonilla (Spa) Radio Popular - Boavista0:19:56
38Quentin Pacher (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:23:00
39Romain Hardy (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:24:06
40Benoît Vaugrenard (Fra) FDJ0:25:24
41Lilian Calmejane (Fra) Direct Energie0:25:37
42Vegard Breen (Nor) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:26:40
43Christian Mager (Ger) Stˆlting Service Group0:26:47
44Romain Combaud (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:27:18
45Luis Mas Bonet (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:27:19
46Benat Txoperena Matxikote (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:27:23
47Imanol Erviti (Spa) Movistar Team0:27:34
48Anthony Delaplace (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:27:47
49Arnaud Gerard (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:28:07
50Alex Aranburu (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:28:10
51Francis Mourey (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:28:14
52Thierry Hupond (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:28:18
53Angelo Tulik (Fra) Direct Energie0:28:24
54Viktor Manakov (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:28:27
55Aitor Gonzalez (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:28:29
56Mickael Delage (Fra) FDJ0:28:37
57Yann Guyot (Fra) Armee de Terre0:28:40
58Jerome Mainard (Fra) Armee de Terre0:28:42
59Nico Denz (Ger) AG2R La Mondiale0:28:48
60Rory Sutherland (Aus) Movistar Team0:28:49
61Rémy Di Gregorio (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:28:50
62Cristian Rodriguez Martin (Spa) Willier Trestina0:28:57
63Julien Berard (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:28:59
64Julien El Fares (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:29:03
65Pierre Gouault (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 930:29:14
66Sergey Firsanov (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:29:23
67Alexander Kamp (Den) Stˆlting Service Group0:29:30
68Michael Reihs (Den) Stˆlting Service Group0:29:33
69Christophe Laborie (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:29:34
70Théo Vimpere (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 930:29:41
71Jerome Cousin (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:29:42
72Olivier Le Gac (Fra) FDJ0:29:54
73Flavien Dassonville (Fra) HP-BTP Auber 930:30:39
74Victor Etxebarria Carrasco (Spa) Radio Popular - Boavista0:30:40
75Loïc Chetout (Fra) Cofidis, Solutions Credits0:31:06
76Romain Le Roux (Fra) Armee de Terre0:32:01
77Imanol Estevez (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:32:06
78Thomas Koep (Ger) Stˆlting Service Group0:32:12
79Aritz Bagües (Spa) Euskadi Basque Country - Murias0:33:21
80Igor Boev (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:33:33
81Arnaud Demare (Fra) FDJ0:33:45
82David Miguel Costa Rodrigues (Por) Radio Popular - Boavista0:34:16
83Manuel Belletti (Ita) Willier TrestinaRow 82 - Cell 2
84Yannick Martinez (Fra) Delko Marseille Provence KTM0:34:22
85Bruno Armirail (Fra) Armee de Terre0:34:24
86Carlos Barbero Cuesta (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA0:34:26
87Lorenzo Manzin (Fra) FDJ0:34:46
88Yohann Gene (Fra) Direct Energie0:35:07
89Julien Duval (Fra) Armee de Terre0:35:18
90Ricardo Ferreira (Por) Radio Popular - Boavista0:35:20
91Stéphane Poulhies (Fra) Armee de Terre0:35:24
92Guillaume De Almeida (Fra) Radio Popular - Boavista0:36:11
93Mamyr Stash (Rus) Gazprom-Rusvelo0:38:08
94Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:41:42
95Matteo Draperi (Ita) Willier Trestina0:42:36
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Points Classification
#Rider Name (Country) Team
1Nairo Alexander Quintana Rojas (Col) Movistar Team
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Mountains Classification
#Rider Name (Country) Team
1Quentin Jauregui (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Best Young Rider
#Rider Name (Country) Team
1Marc Soler (Spa) Movistar Team

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

Latest on Cyclingnews