Casar gets the big cheese in Paris-Camembert

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Frenchman Sandy Casar (FDJ) took his first win of the season today at Paris-Camembert. The Francaise de Jeux rider outsprinted his four breakaway companions to take out the fourth round of the Coupe de France in convincing fashion. The victory was just reward for a spirited attacking performance by the former Tour de France stage winner, whose efforts earlier in the race created the important selection.

How it unfolded

Sylvain Georges (Big Mat - Auber 93), Thomas Vaubourzeix (La Pomme Marseille) and Sven Jodts (Topsport Vlaanderen) got away early and slowly built their lead over the peloton to just over six minutes. Cofidis then took contol of the peloton and brought the gap down quickly as the resolve of the front trio began to fall apart. As the bunch closed, Sven Jodts briefly attempted to go it alone but his efforts earlier in the day took their toll and he was swallowed up by the pack.

An elite selection of 11 riders formed off the front just as the early breakaway was swallowed. The group included Samuel Dumoulin and former yellow jersey wearer Cyril Dessel, but Team Europcar sensed the split was dangerous and brought it all together again. Casar then played his first card jumping off the front with two other riders. The three were looking good at the head of the race and were eventually joined by seven other riders who made the final selection of ten. Casar also had teammate Pierrick Fedrigo and the two worked together to set up Casar for the sprint.

Casar proved too strong in the uphill finish, besting compatiots Romain Hardy (Bretagne - Schuller) and Julien Antomarchi (Velo-Club La Pomme Marseille) in a dominant sprint to the line.

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