Looking at the top ten of Sunday's stage two of the Giro d'Italia, which ended in a bunch sprint taken by world champion Mark Cavendish (Sky), one name stood out: the one of third-placed Geoffrey Soupe (FDJ-Big Mat). The 24-year-old was not expected to finish so high up in the stage results, and for quite a while after the finish it was his teammate Arnaud Démare, FDJ's star sprinter, who was announced to have scored a podium place.
Démare, however, finished 24th, while his lead-out man Soupe sprinted his way to media attention. It was such a surprise, even for himself, that the first thing he did when he was back at the bus was to apologise to his team leader.
"I'm sorry I disrespected team orders but at a certain point I lost sight of you," was what Soupe told Démare, according to L'Equipe, feeling guilty for having scored such a good result despite his role as domestique. But Démare was caught in the crash that took down a fair amount of riders in the final corner with 600 metres to go, so Soupe was right to take matters into his own hands.
Article continues below"Geoffrey was scared of being given a reprimand, but I'm happy to see him finish so well after having been disappointing last year," said FDJ's directeur sportif Martial Gayant. "Let's hope it will serve as a trigger."
Soupe, a former U23 French champion, nevertheless took two victories in 2011, a stage at the Tropicale Amissa Bongo and another at the Tour d'Alsace. It is his second year as a pro with FDJ, and the first time in a Grand Tour.
