Who said that Paris-Nice was a “Race to the Sun”? This year again, the cycling event lives up to its nickname. In 2023, the sixth stage which was to arrive in La Colle-sur-Loup (Alpes-Maritimes) was canceled due to the wind. A year later, difficult weather conditions disrupted the main stage of the 82nd edition, Saturday March 9.
Shortened by 70 kilometers, this stage was won by Aleksandr Vlasov (Bora-Hansgrohe). On the slopes of La Madone d'Utelle, the Russian carried out an attack which proved decisive just over 4 kilometers from the summit, located at an altitude of 1,175 metres.
Behind Vlasov, the Belgian Remco Evenepoel (Soudal - Quick-Step), favorite for the final victory, settled the sprint of the strong in front of Primoz Roglic (Bora-Hansgrohe). Without managing to clearly distance its competitors, therefore. Lonely and in difficulty in the final, the American Brandon McNulty (UAE Emirates), seventh in the stage 27 seconds behind the winner, narrowly retained his yellow jersey. But it hangs by a thread before the final stage, a 109-kilometer loop around Nice, Sunday March 10.
In the general classification, McNulty is only 4 seconds ahead of American Matteo Jorgenson (Visma-Lease a Bike). Remco Evenepoel returned to the foot of the podium, 36 seconds behind the leader.
Queen stage disrupted by snow
Originally, the organizers had designed a 173-kilometer route between Nice and Auron. But, due to snowfall and gusty winds expected at the ski resort located at 1,600 meters above sea level, the decision to shorten the stage was made and publicly announced on Thursday evening. Consequence: the difficult and unprecedented climb to Auron (7.3 kilometers at 7.2%) but also the Col de la Colmiane were removed from the route in the Alpes-Maritimes.
“We prefer to ensure the safety of the runners. We could not leave them in uncertainty,” justified the director of the event, François Lemarchand, quoted by L’Equipe. Although the riders were spared the snow, they were still confronted with wet conditions while pedaling on the winding roads of the Nice hinterland.
Two men took the lead, without opening up a significant gap with their pursuers before the final climb (15.3 kilometers at 5.7%). The Frenchman Benjamin Thomas (Cofidis) ended up getting up around thirty kilometers from the finish and the Swiss Johan Jacobs (Movistar) was caught by the peloton at the foot of the final climb.
Like the fourth stage, on the slopes of Beaujolais, on Wednesday, the big explanation between the favorites did not really take place. After Vlasov, who took advantage of his distant position in the general classification to escape, Remco Evenepoel went on the attack 2 kilometers from the finish, without however succeeding in losing his competitors.
On Sunday, five climbs, including two first category climbs, are on the program for the final stage of this race which is a preview of the Tour de France. Because, due to the Olympic Games in Paris, the 2024 men's edition of the Grande Boucle will take the runners to Nice, for a final time trial, on July 21.
