The first French winner, Cédrine Kerbaol approached the yellow shirt – Libération

2024-08-16 16:19:34

Frenchwoman Cédrine Kerbaol won the 6th stage of the women’s Tour de France, this Friday August 16 in Morteau (Doubs). She moved to 2nd place in the general classification, 16 seconds behind the Polish Katarzyna Niewiadoma.

He crossed the finish line alone in Morteau, in Doubs, this Friday August 16. A historic performance already for the rider Cédrine Kerbaol, who attacked 15 kilometers from the finish: the young Breton is the first French woman to win on the Tour route since the rebirth of the competition, in 2022.

Before him, we have to go back to Jeannie Longo, in 1989, to find traces of the last success of the local runner in one of the predictions of this competition. At the age of 23, Cédrine Kerbaol, the winner of this sixth stage of the Tour de France, without hesitation invited himself to the big table in an event which confirmed his great talent, a year after he won the white jersey for a good young rider more than.

Coming from a family “Too much sport”, who came to cycling through mountain biking after practicing cycling and surfing, look lucid and caring in the evolution of women’s cycling. “Today, girls can make a living from cycling, which was not the case a few years ago. Everything is going in the right direction even if the roads are very limited to men. he noted. And to add: “The new generation of runners are very lucky.”

“There are expectations for me but I’m charting my course”

Second in the general classification, just 16 seconds behind the Polish Katarzyna Niewiadoma before entering the Alps, the Bretons are the sensations of this week. On Sunday, in Rotterdam, the day before the start of the competition, however he said he did not “Still top ten level”. However, for almost a week of this Tour de France, the young leader of the German team Ceratizit has been riding with big names.

If he lost a few feathers during the 4th stage in the mountains of La Redoute and La Roche-aux-Faucons to Liège, Brestoise made his mark by finishing five seconds (4th) behind star Demi Vollering in Tuesday’s time trial . “It’s crazy. Wow!” he greeted himself. Before adding: “It’s true that since my white shirt last year, people look at me a little differently, that there are expectations for me but I’m planning my way, I’m progressing step by step.”

Having gone for training in the Pyrenees before the Tour, then another three weeks at altitude before the Giro and abandoned in the fourth stage, Kerbaol is on the way to do better than a year ago, also driven by the feeling of revenge behind you. non-selection for the Paris Olympic Games. “I’m very sad, it’s true, even if I don’t blame coach Paul Brousse. I think I have my place in the Games. But failures, disappointments, all that gives me strength. And I came to the Journey with anger”he explained.

On Saturday, the important things begin: Cédrine Kerbaol will face the high mountains (in Grand-Bornand) and on Sunday (in Alpe-d’Huez). But the French rider was ready: “I have been very active in the mountains in recent weeks. I hope these efforts will pay off. “