Ferrand Prevot repeats as French time trial champion

Pauline Ferrand Prevot demonstrated that her victory in last year's French time trial championship was no fluke: the 21-year-old repeated her success in both the elite and U23 women's titles, beating last year's runner-up Audrey Cordon by 20 seconds in the 27km test in Saint-Amand-les-Eaux.

Ferrand Prevot, the last rider to start as defending champion, struggled with a malfunctioning earpiece in the race, and unable to hear her splits relied upon bystanders calling out gaps.

"I saw very quickly from the first intermediate I was about ten seconds ahead," she told FFC.fr. "I also knew that Jeannie Longo was present, and I told myself that if it came to that, that she was in shape.

"I stayed focused on me, on my race, my effort. Now that I've won here, my goal is to win the road race."

For Cordon, who posted the fastest time before Ferrand Prevot came through, second place was at first a profound disappointment, but then a satisfying finish.

"I'm a competitor and I like to win, so immediately, I was not satisfied, but afterwards it was better. I am pleased with this second place, I appreciate it and more so, I'm glad that it was Pauline who won. I do not despair, one day it will be me who mounts the highest step of the podium."

In a thinly veiled reference to 54-year-old Jeannie Longo, an 11-time French national time trial champion who last won in 2011, and this year only managed 9th place, Cordon said, "We, the younger generation, have proven that our takeover of last year was not a coincidence."

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