The Colombian of the UAE team, Sebastián Molano, won at the GP de Denain, the second round of the Coupe de France. But the journey was not so linear for everyone. Especially for a rider from the AG2R team. After shooting straight, Stan Dewulf indeed missed the turn and ended his race headfirst into a pile of manure. Not necessarily a pleasant place to land, even if his fall had, at least, had to be cushioned.
The Belgian was part of a group of pursuers, a few kilometers from the finish. But on the tricky cobblestones of the route, he misjudged his turn. He finally finished 53rd, 3 minutes and 37 seconds behind the winner. More fear than harm, therefore, for the AG2R runner. Although the smell was probably unpleasant, the pile of manure saved him from potential injury.
A difficult race
Three weeks before Paris-Roubaix (Sunday April 9), the Denain GP and its twelve cobbled sections are a warm-up. This year again, the race was spectacular. Dirty and muddy, the last cobbled section caused several falls. Sebastián Molano ended up winning the sprint after a five-man breakaway.
” I am very happy. I had really good legs and a big team today. I have always been well placed. Special thanks to Mikkel Bjerg (his partner at UAE) who did an extraordinary job because it was a bit of a war in the end”, declared the winner after the race.