The French runner Lenny Martinez won this Saturday the queen stage of the Tour de Romandie. At the same time, he seizes the yellow jersey.
A boss victory. The Frenchman Lenny Martinez won the queen stage of the Tour de Romandie on Saturday, playing the Portuguese Joao Almeida at the top of the long ascension towards Thyon 2000, seizing the yellow jersey at the same time. At 21, the Bahrain Victorious prodigy offered himself with cold the eighth professional success of his career, the second in World Tour after the fifth stage of Paris-Nice in March.
«Each year, I just improve myself, and that’s it: I am wearing the yellow jersey. Being a leader in such a stages race, and also winning a step is just incredible“The pocket climber was delighted (1.68 m) with the RTS.
Second in the day before, the Frenchman has taken the first four difficulties of this part of Sion – more than 4,000 m of elevation elevation condensed in 128 km – before making the difference within 20 km to Thyon 2000, term of the 4th stage. Launched three kilometers from the summit in a duel with Almeida, after a big job from the UAEs to skim the peloton, Martinez took the least possible to accelerate just before the line and supplant the Portuguese.
Evenepoel and Retrait
«I have a good explosiveness, I know that Joao too “et “In the end it was a little freshness“Said the Cannois, hardly embarrassed by altitude, falling temperatures and the road soggy after a summer week. Martinez raises his arms to the very place where he had not been able to accompany his leader of the Groupama FDJ, Thibaut Pinot, second in Thyon in the Tour de Romandie 2023, to the end.
In the general classification, he chips the yellow jersey to a compatriot, Alex Baudin, to count two seconds ahead of the Italian Lorenzo Fortunato and three on Joao Almeida. But the differences are so weak – Almeida and Martinez having counted their efforts rather than looking for their pursuers at a distance – that the suspense is intact before the final time trial of 17 km on Sunday in Geneva: six runners are still held in one minute. “”I don’t think it suits me 100%, but I’m going to give everything, you never know“Said the Frenchman, who will then go at altitude to prepare the Critérium du Dauphiné then the Tour de France.
Big favorite of this time trial, the Belgian Remco Evenepoel is still far from its best form, for its first team test since its serious fall in training in early December. Loked almost nine kilometers from the finish, the double Olympic champion limited the damage by finishing the ascent to the train. He still points to 9th row, 1 min 41 sec from Martinez.
