Tour de la Provence 2024 – Stage 3

The echelon stage.

Route

Flat as a pancake more or less.

Starting in the east. It is the swampy area where you will see the wind play a role.

Finale

A very simple and safe finale. Lovely to see.

Weather

8-9 m/s wind from the NWW. Dry. The wind is the gamechanger in this part of the world. As I said the other day, the last 100 km are perfect for echelons. Not really much to argue about, there will be a split. From my experience, there will just be some riders missing it anyway even though they know it will happen.

Contenders

Pedersen – can he sweep the race? He will start as the race tomorrow. He was isolated today but tomorrow the team is better equipped.

Bennett – Armirail and Godon are worth their weight in gold tomorrow. Let’s see if he can find some success.

Zingle – constistent and he knows how to sit in the peloton when it matters. He is looking for bonus seconds in order to finish on the podium.

Sheehan – podium contender. I think he is ISPT’s card tomorrow. If you win Paris – Tours, you usually know how to ride in crosswinds and tough weather conditions.

Watson – strikes me as a rider who should make the split too.

Dekker – we will have to see. He is on of the quicker men here but the team looks weak.

Who will win?

Mads Pedersen again. It’s time for him to play with someone his own size.