COURMAYEUR – Mont Blanc can be reached from the Pré de Pascal clearing. The Miage glacier occasionally—all too often, unfortunately—releases blocks of ice. The roar echoes throughout the Veny Valley, breaking the mountain's characteristic silence. Shortly after, this silence is broken by the panting of Joshua David Golliker who, dangling, climbs up to an altitude of 1.912 metres. of this spectacular arrival of the Tour of the Aosta ValleyAn Englishman on Mont Blanc, a bit like the pioneers of mountaineering. Incidentally, today's stage started right in front of the Courmayeur mountain guides' house.
If yesterday's appetizer was light, Today here is a first bad, very tough stage. At the start, people wondered why so few Italian teams were present at this race. One of the reasons cited by several sports directors was that the race was too tough and very few Italian teams had the right man for such a demanding course. Maybe so, maybe not, but the Aosta Valley has certainly never been too easy.
It's always Fdj
Who instead had the man (and who knows if he knew it) was the continental of the Groupama-Fdj. In the last two years the boys of Jerome Gannat, the sports director, had dominated. But it was a different team. A team packed with champions: from Germani to Martinez, from Gregoire to Thompson…
«It's not that team – Gannat told us this morning – but Rolland Brieuc can do well and maybe another kid too." And the other boy didn't do well: he did very well.
Joshua Golliker delivered a sensational finale. And not just on the final climb. The Englishman attacked just as they were about to recapture the breakaway, about ten kilometers from the start of the climb. It was assumed he was working for the others, given how hard he was pushing down the valley.
«It seemed like a good place to shoot. "—says Golliker as he waits to reach the podium—"There were some from the old breakaway, and I decided to push hard. That way, I could go at my own pace and attack the climb with a bit of a lead."
"What was I thinking during the climb? Nothing. I turned off my brain and just focused on the cadence». A high cadence, always at 80 rpm with the 36×34 as the lightest ratio on its StoneAn excellent cadence considering that we often pedaled at 13 percent with a peak of 20.
Terrible little boy
Golliker is a first-year, he was born in 2004, as are the top three today. And certain performances at this level take on even more value.
"Joshua raced in France last year," Gannat says, "with a team from Toulouse (Team 31 Jolly Cycles, ed.) and even won. We kept an eye on him and finally signed him."
"Yes, I'm a little surprised that he managed to win, too, but not much. This morning I told you we had two boys, and well, he was the other one. Last week we were on a training camp here and we tried out the stages of this Valle d'Aosta. I saw that he was pedaling well, who was growing in condition a lot. This could be a suitable arrival for him."
«And then he played his cards well. The attack at that intermediate point in the valley floor wasn't a coincidence. David is very strong, but he doesn't have a clean shot., he doesn't have the change of pace. This way he was able to go away at a pace."
Of course, if things go this way, he could even keep the yellow jersey. But everything remains to be seen, and the French sports director himself seems to be "taking it one day at a time."
Faure Prost is raring to go
But the big names behind them only partially let things slide. It must be said that the favorites' teams raced like the pros. Great control, compact ranks, and powerful bursts of speed in the finale.
And among the favorites there is certainly Alexy Faure Cheers, French of the Circus-ReUzIn the final 1.500 meters he took over 30” from Golliker.
«Today I finished second behind a rider who did a good job – said Faure Prost – He's nothing new to me. He raced in France last year, so I knew him and I know that when he's healthy, he can do great things. Maybe I didn't expect him to do it at this level. But it's also true that at the foot of the climb he already had a good lead and by then it was too late for us."
For many, Faure Prost is among the favorites, if not the favorite. He accepts this statement, but also says that there are other athletes who can do well, and they are so young and the course is so tough, that it's difficult to make predictions. However...
«But the legs were fine. I think I unlocked them completely on the last climb. I'm confident for the next few days."
The challenge has just begun; three more fiery days lie ahead. Extremely tough, fascinating. And the feeling is that Groupama-Fdj will fight hard.
