Route d’Occitanie 2023 – Stage 2 [FULL STAGE]

June 16, 2023

Route d’Occitanie 2023 – Stage 2 – Cazouls-lès-Béziers – Graulhet : 182 km

This four-day stage-race has gone by many different names over the years but was perhaps best known as La Route du Sud, a name it carried from 1988 all the way to 2017. The race is now known as La Route d’Occitanie, a name that better reflects the region in southwest France where its four stages often take place. The route of this four-day stage-race largely stays within the Occitanie region of southwestern France, dipping in and out of the French-Pyrenees throughout the race. While the race has, on occasion, featured a mid-week time trial, it’s often the towering Pyrenean mountain passes that dictate the overall winner of La Route d’Occitanie. Several of the range’s most imposing peaks have featured on this race, including the Col de Peyresourde and Port de Balès.

Jason Tesson (TotalEnergies) won stage 2 of La Route d’Occitanie after beating Corbin Strong (Israel Premier Tech) and Elia Viviani (Ineos) in a bunch sprint in Graulhet.

Marijn van den Berg (EF Education-EasyPost) finished 13th on the stage to retain the overall lead, four seconds ahead of Strong.

The stage was animated by Carlos Garcia Pierna (Equipo Kern Pharma) who pressed clear alone after being part of the day’s early break, but he was recaptured with a shade under 50km to go.

With an eye to the overall standings, Benoît Cosnefroy (AG2R Citroën) and Michael Woods (Israel Premier Tech) successfully contested the intermediate sprints in the finale, but the day was always likely to end in a mass finish.

Filippo Ganna delivered a striking cameo in the final kilometre on behalf of his Ineos teammate Viviani, but the spoils would fall to Tesson, who showed a fine turn of speed in the finishing straight.

It was the sixth win of the Frenchman’s career and his third of the 2023 season after his brace of victories at the Tropicale Amissa Bongo in January.

Results :