Polartec-Kometa fight unsuccessfully for the break on a hard day in Bretagne
Tour of Bretagne
Stage 3: Baden-Clohars Carnoët (181,1 km)
Hell of a day on the Tour of Brittany. A third stage with a lot of water, a lot of cold and a lot of wind in which a breakaway was successful and in which the Norwegian Dahl regained the lead. The Polartec-Kometa squad fought to enter and have a presence in the breakaway, without success, but managed to include four riders in the main squad (Miguel Angel Ballesteros, Diego Pablo Sevilla, Patrick Gamper and Michel Ries) and have a day without any problems, without suffering any significant incident in terms of falls or mechanical breakdowns, beyond a puncture suffered by Ballesteros when fighting to be in the lead. Midway through the stage, Matteo Moschetti rode on a second main group.
The victory was for the Frenchman Tony Hurel (Sojasun Espoir), who beat other four cyclists in a small sprint (Norwegian Dahl, Italian Affini, Belgian Dewulf and American Mostov) with whom he managed to consolidate a vanguard in the most numerous escape, nine units, which he managed to consolidate in the lead of the race in the final circuit.
Jesús Hernández, director: “It’s been a long and hard day. A very dangerous day, with a hellish wind on the left side all day long, with water, with cold, with a very high rhythm… In the end, there was a nine-meter flight inside the circuit we tried to be in, but it was not possible. Ballesteros, Ries, Gamper and Sevilla have been attentive, but in the end the escape into which we had not managed to get one of our own was consolidated. That’s a shame. But the attitude has been very good”.
This Saturday, the fourth stage connects the towns of Clohars Carnoët and Gran Champ over 162.7 kilometres. A stage with a complex end. “The final circuit is tough and dangerous. Our cyclists are in good condition and not being able to catch that leak today was a shame, but that’s how cycling is, you always have to keep the positive and tomorrow we’ll try again. Tomorrow will be another day”, Hernández concludes.
(automatic translation, sorry for mistakes)
