Paris-Tours 2021 [FULL RACE]

October 10, 2021

Paris-Tours 2021 – Chartres – Tours : 212,3 km

Paris-Tours is one of the oldest one-day races on the professional calendar and since its inaugural edition in 1896 it has been largely dominated by the sprinters, with most of the 114 editions ending in a hectic bunch sprint on the 2.7km-long Avenue de Grammont, one of cycling’s best-known finishing straights. The route of Paris-Tours has changed countless times over the race’s 125-year history, but it has always hovered around the 250km mark, making it one of the longest races of the entire season.

Arnaud Démare (Groupama-FDJ) snatched victory at Paris-Tours on Sunday, sprinting from a four-man group in a dramatic climax to the late-season Classic.

The Frenchman only hit the front of the race inside the final 750 metres, having combined with Jasper Stuyven (Trek-Segafredo) to bridge across to the leading duo of Franck Bonnamour (B&B Hotels) and Stan Dewulf (AG2R Citroën).

That pair had been out front for more than 40 kilometres, attacking from a reduced peloton that had been split in the crosswinds, and looked on course to contest the title between them as they ticked off the numerous gravel sectors and collaborated all the way to Tours.

But they were hunted down as Démare and Stuyven themselves collaborated in the final 10km, making the junction with barely a moment to catch their breath for the sprint. Démare opened it up and sustained his power all the way to the line, with Bonnamour pipping Stuyven for the runner-up spot while Dewulf faded behind.

“I’m really happy, it’s a lot of emotion,” Démare said. “We know what I have been going through lately, no success, not the legs I wanted, today was a really ideal day. It was a sprint to the finish, I really didn’t want to miss out.

“We stayed for a long time with Stuyven at 10 seconds behind the two riders, we were all in it together. Finally we get in, I take the initiative to close the gap. I threw everything I had into it and it worked. I’m very happy.”

Paris-Tours was once known as a sprinter’s Classic but the introduction of gravel tracks through the Vouvray vineyards a few years ago drastically altered the complexion of a race that has existed since 1896. Démare is a sprinter by trade but couldn’t rely on a bunch gallop.

“I didn’t think that this new course of Paris-Tours would suit me but everything turned out as I wanted,” Démare said.

He was up front when Stuyven split the bunch on the long penultimate Peu Morier gravel sector with 20km to go, and then the pair of them went clear when Démare’s teammate Valentin Madouas accelerated on the slopes of the Côte de Vouvray soon after. They had Bob Jungels (AG2R) and Roger Adria (Kern Pharma) for company, and the 25-second gap to the front of the race became even more bridgeable when Frederik Frison (Lotto Soudal), who’d been part of the original move with Dewulf and Bonnamour, punctured with 13km remaining.

Still, cooperation was lacking, and Démare decided to issue a huge acceleration on the final climb of the Côte de Rochecorbon, to which only Stuyven could respond. The Belgian denied the first request for a turn but soon came through, and the pair worked faultlessly together to hunt down the leaders.

They had them in sight in the final couple of kilometres and a couple of huge turns apiece saw them get across inside the final kilometre. After the briefest of lulls, the quartet sprang into action once again, and Démare still had enough left in the tank to make his finishing kick count.

How it unfolded

The 212.3km route from Chartres to Tours was largely flat, with the gravel sectors and short climbs crammed into the final 50km. However, a stiff tailwind, with a hint of crosswind, made for a fast and furious day from the off.

Gijs Leemreize (Jumbo-Visma) and Julien Duval (AG2R Citroën) formed the early breakaway before Rune Herregodts (Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise) bridged across to make it a trio. Groupama-FDJ soon accelerated in an apparent attempt to spark echelons but then relented, allowing the breakaway to sail clear and carve out an eight-minute lead.

However, with well over 100km still remaining, the pace in the peloton picked up markedly. After a long period of full-throttle riding, the wind struck in the right direction to split the race into echelons around 80km from home. The bunch ended up effectively split in two, with most of the big-name favourites present and correct in a front peloton of 35 riders.

That leading group quickly swallowed up the breakaway and then hit the first of the nine gravel sectors with 50km remaining. Immediately, a new selection was made, with Bonnamour, Dewulf, and Frison going clear with Connor Swift (Arkéa-Samsic), but the latter wasn’t there for long as he fell victim to a puncture on the loose gravel.

There was a regrouping in the main peloton as the leading trio opened up a lead of 45 seconds on the subsequent three sectors, with Trek-Segafredo and Groupama-FDJ the teams marshalling the peloton. FDJ looked to use the Côte de la Rochère climb with 29km to go as a launchpad to cut the deficit, dropping the defending champion Casper Pedersen (DSM) as the bunch split to pieces.

That brought the gap down to 20 seconds but the front three rode strongly over the next two sectors and up the short climb that led into the Peu Morier sector – the longest of the race. It was there that Stuyven lit things up, going clear briefly with Démare, Madouas, Jungels, and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Fenix). The bunch split to pieces and, although it did start to reform on the tarmac, the Côte de Vouvray was just around the corner and Madouas lit it up once again.

Démare, Stuyven, Jungels, and Adria made it a chasing quintet, with the latter launching a brief attack with 15km to go. A couple of kilometres later, it was heartbreak for Frison, who punctured and had to watch the chasers sail past while he got a new wheel.

The gap fell to 16 seconds but they started looking at each other and it went back out, offering a sliver of hope to what was now a two-man lead group. On the final climb with 11km to go, Démare took matters into his own hands, going well clear before Stuyven impressively worked his way up.

The last 10km saw a dramatic two-on-two pursuit, with the catch being made in the home straight before Démare powered clear to finally win the French Classic where he’s twice been on the lower steps of the podium.

Results :
1 Arnaud Demare (Fra) Groupama-FDJ 4:33:07
2 Franck Bonnamour (Fra) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
3 Jasper Stuyven (Bel) Trek-Segafredo
4 Stan Dewulf (Bel) AG2R Citroën Team 0:00:03
5 Danny van Poppel (Ned) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux 0:00:40
6 Bryan Coquard (Fra) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
7 Arne Marit (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
8 Andrea Pasqualon (Ita) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
9 Julien Trarieux (Fra) Delko
10 Amaury Capiot (Bel) Team Arkea-Samsic
11 Gijs Van Hoecke (Bel) AG2R Citroën Team
12 Jasper Philipsen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix
13 Samuel Leroux (Fra) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole
14 Valentin Tabellion (Fra) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole
15 Piet Allegaert (Bel) Cofidis
16 Anthony Turgis (Fra) TotalEnergies
17 Urko Berrade Fernandez (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
18 Matis Louvel (Fra) Team Arkea-Samsic
19 Roger Adria Oliveras (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
20 Jos van Emden (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
21 Bob Jungels (Lux) AG2R Citroën Team
22 Valentin Madouas (Fra) Groupama-FDJ 0:00:44
23 Patrick Gamper (Aut) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:01:22
24 Dries De Bondt (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix 0:01:25
25 Dylan Groenewegen (Ned) Jumbo-Visma 0:01:27
26 Hugo Hofstetter (Fra) Israel Start-up Nation 0:01:29
27 Edward Theuns (Bel) Trek-Segafredo
28 Fabian Lienhard (Swi) Groupama-FDJ
29 Alan Riou (Fra) Team Arkea-Samsic
30 Jérémy Leveau (Fra) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole
31 Stefan Küng (Swi) Groupama-FDJ
32 Kamil Malecki (Pol) Lotto Soudal 0:01:31
33 Adrien Lagree (Fra) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
34 Florian Maitre (Fra) TotalEnergies
35 Silvan Dillier (Swi) Alpecin-Fenix
36 Jordi Meeus (Bel) Bora-Hansgrohe 0:02:20
37 Jason Tesson (Fra) St Michel-Auber 93
38 Senne Leysen (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix
39 Laurenz Rex (Bel) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB
40 Ward Vanhoof (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
41 Greg Van Avermaet (Bel) AG2R Citroën Team
42 Jean-Pierre Drucker (Lux) Cofidis
43 Lawrence Naesen (Bel) AG2R Citroën Team
44 Ramon Sinkeldam (Ned) Groupama-FDJ
45 Pascal Eenkhoorn (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
46 Erik Nordsaeter Resell (Nor) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
47 Mathias De Witte (Bel) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole
48 Unai Iribar Jauregi (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
49 Michael Schär (Swi) AG2R Citroën Team
50 Jake Stewart (GBr) Groupama-FDJ
51 Niki Terpstra (Ned) TotalEnergies
52 Alex Kirsch (Lux) Trek-Segafredo
53 Olivier Le Gac (Fra) Groupama-FDJ 0:02:25
54 Christophe Laporte (Fra) Cofidis 0:02:29
55 Frederik Frison (Bel) Lotto Soudal
56 Jens Reynders (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise 0:04:34
57 Connor Swift (GBr) Team Arkea-Samsic
58 Clément Russo (Fra) Team Arkea-Samsic
59 Gerben Thijssen (Bel) Lotto Soudal
60 Cyril Barthe (Fra) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
61 Guillaume Van Keirsbulck (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix
62 Simone Consonni (Ita) Cofidis
63 Romain Cardis (Fra) St Michel-Auber 93
64 Cedric Beullens (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
65 Gijs Leemreize (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
66 Michel Heßmann (Ger) Jumbo-Visma
67 Mick van Dijke (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
68 Tom Devriendt (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
69 Aimé De Gendt (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
70 Brent Van Moer (Bel) Lotto Soudal
71 Morten Hulgaard (Den) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
72 Alexander Kamp (Den) Trek-Segafredo
73 Julien Duval (Fra) AG2R Citroën Team
74 Tom Van Asbroeck (Bel) Israel Start-up Nation 0:06:00
75 Florian Vermeersch (Bel) Lotto Soudal
76 Alexandre Delettre (Fra) Delko
77 Sep Vanmarcke (Bel) Israel Start-up Nation 0:07:34
78 Timo Roosen (Ned) Jumbo-Visma
79 Rune Herregodts (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
80 Adrien Petit (Fra) TotalEnergies
81 Casper Pedersen (Den) Team DSM
82 Clément Carisey (Fra) Delko
83 Maciej Bodnar (Pol) Bora-Hansgrohe
84 Mathijs Paasschens (Ned) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB 0:10:05
85 Nico Denz (Ger) Team DSM
86 Evaldas Siskevicius (Ltu) Delko
87 Edward Planckaert (Bel) Alpecin-Fenix
88 Milan Menten (Bel) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB
89 Cees Bol (Ned) Team DSM
90 Lars Saugstad (Nor) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
91 Søren Kragh Andersen (Den) Team DSM
92 Loïc Vliegen (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux 0:12:50
93 Ludovic Robeet (Bel) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB
94 Sébastien Grignard (Bel) Lotto Soudal 0:12:53
95 Alexis Renard (Fra) Israel Start-up Nation 0:13:30
96 Jenthe Biermans (Bel) Israel Start-up Nation
97 Luca Mozzato (Ita) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
98 Taco van der Hoorn (Ned) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
99 Kiel Reijnen (USA) Trek-Segafredo 0:14:16
100 Nicolas Debeaumarche (Fra) St Michel-Auber 93
101 Donavan Grondin (Fra) Team Arkea-Samsic
102 Danny van der Tuuk (Ned) Equipo Kern Pharma
103 Pau Miquel Delgado (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
104 Tom Bohli (Swi) Cofidis
105 Tony Hurel (Fra) St Michel-Auber 93
106 Mulu Kinfe Hailemichael (Eth) Delko
107 André Carvalho (Por) Cofidis
108 Txomin Juaristi Arrieta (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
109 Szymon Sajnok (Pol) Cofidis
110 Scott Thwaites (GBr) Alpecin-Fenix
111 Tom Wirtgen (Lux) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB
112 Erik Baska (Svk) Bora-Hansgrohe
113 Dries Van Gestel (Bel) TotalEnergies
114 Luc Wirtgen (Lux) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB
115 Mikel Iturria Segurola (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
116 Tom Paquot (Bel) Bingoal Pauwels Sauzen WB 0:14:24
117 Antonio Angulo Sampedro (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi 0:21:22
DNF Nikias Arndt (Ger) Team DSM
DNF Nils Eekhoff (Ned) Team DSM
DNF Daan Hoole (Ned) SEG Racing Academy
DNF Roger Kluge (Ger) Lotto Soudal
DNF Martin Laas (Est) Bora-Hansgrohe
DNF Rüdiger Selig (Ger) Bora-Hansgrohe
DNF Fabien Doubey (Fra) TotalEnergies
DNF Norman Vahtra (Est) Israel Start-up Nation
DNF Baptiste Planckaert (Bel) Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux
DNF Kevin Ledanois (Fra) Team Arkea-Samsic
DNF Rasmus Tiller (Nor) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
DNF Jonas Abrahamsen (Nor) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
DNF Anders Skaarseth (Nor) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
DNF Eduard Prades Reverter (Spa) Delko
DNF Anthony Maldonado (Fra) St Michel-Auber 93
DNF Flavien Maurelet (Fra) St Michel-Auber 93
DNF Maximilien Picoux (Bel) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole
DNF Emiel Vermeulen (Bel) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole
DNF Alex Jaime Fernandez (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
DNF Ibon Ruiz Sedano (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
DNF Niklas Märkl (Ger) Team DSM
DNF Jakob Egholm (Den) Trek-Segafredo
DNF Lorrenzo Manzin (Fra) TotalEnergies
DNF Guy Sagiv (Isr) Israel Start-up Nation
DNF Jonathan Hivert (Fra) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
DNF Cyril Lemoine (Fra) B&B Hotels p/b KTM
DNF Kristoffer Halvorsen (Nor) Uno-X Pro Cycling Team
DNF August Jensen (Nor) Delko
DNF Ruben Apers (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
DNF Aaron Van Poucke (Bel) Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise
DNF Jokin Aranburu Arruti (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
DNF Mikel Bizkarra Etxegibel (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
DNF Joan Bou Company (Spa) Euskaltel-Euskadi
DNF Francisco Galvan Fernandez (Spa) Equipo Kern Pharma
DNS Morné Van Niekerk (RSA) St Michel-Auber 93
DNS Jordan Levasseur (Fra) Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Metropole