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Race Results

Tour Of Montreal

Montreal, Canada

Stage 1     Stage 2    Stage 3    Stage 4

111km

MAGALI LE FLOC’H EARNS HER FIRST NORTH AMERICAN VICTORY

Magali Le Floc’h of Team RONA/Esker earned her first North American victory and won the third stage of the Tour du Grand Montreal in the Rigaud region near Montreal today.  Scoring RONA/Esker’s third win in four races since Saturday, the French champion thus climbed to third place in general classification, behind the new yellow jersey Amber Neben (T Mobile) and Lyne Bessette (Saturn).  All three finished with a more than 30 second lead over a group of 26 chasers.  Le Floc’h completed the stage’s 111 kilometres in 2h 54’ 31’’, at an average speed of 38.16 km/h.

Going into the last stage, Neben enjoys a two-second lead over Bessette and a 13-second advantage over Le Floc’h, which bodes for intense competition tomorrow.

 Today’s stage unfolded on a hilly course, which included three significant difficulties.  It was intense and aggressive, as Saturn deployed a plan often used to attack a yellow jersey.  At the 12^th kilometre Manon Jutras played rabbit to get the yellow jersey Geneviève Jeanson to chase.  But Jeanson’s teammates were effective in protecting their leader and in managing the gap in the 20-25 second range.  When Jutras was reeled in after a 25-kilometre break, Saturn immediately sent its other riders in the front, one after the other.  Each time, RONA/Esker managed the gap.  Jeanson took the lead when she had to in order to win Queen-of-the-mountain points. 

After 77 kilometres of racing, Jeanson, Bessette and Neben broke away together.  Soon a chase group was formed with 8 riders on board that quickly bridged to the three runaways.  Immediately T Mobile’s Kristin Armstrong counterattacked and increased her lead up to a maximum of 50 seconds, 20 kilometres before the finish.  Then the lead started to melt.  Then after 95 kilometres, another chase group – Bessette, Le Floc’h and Neben – emerged and swooped down on Armstrong, who stayed with them for a few kilometres but was then dropped and absorbed by a large group of chasers.  A threat to the yellow jersey, Bessette did most of the work in the breakaway, while Le Floc’h and Neben stayed on her wheel.  Behind, Jeanson and her teammates tried to bring back a group of 25 racers.  In vain.

 Le Floc’h finally beat her two breakaway partners in the sprint – Neben by two bike lengths, and Bessette by 3 seconds.  

“Geneviève attacked and I went in front of her to help, then Bessette vigorously counterattacked”, Le Floc’h said after the stage.  I took Bessette’s wheel and a gap opened behind.  When André (Aubut, RONA/Esker’s manager) gave me the green to stay in front, I figured I had no choice.  The girls had worked so hard all day, I owed it to them to win!”  

Disappointed by the loss of her yellow jersey, Jeanson was happy with her teammate’s win.  She offered no excuses.  “As for me, I was not in super shape and I missed the good break, too bad! “, she said.  She now stands in fifth place, 32 seconds behind the new leader.  Tomorrow she will wear the Queen of the Mountain’s green jersey.

Tomorrow, the fourth and last stage is a flat, 80-km road circuit in Terrebonne.  The race’s web site is at www.worldcupmontreal.org.

Third stage:  Rigaud

Stage Rankings

General Classification after three stages

Team RONA/Esker is one of only two Canadian women’s cycling teams in the Elite Category that are recognized by the International Cycling Union. The team is made up of four Canadian racers (Geneviève Jeanson, Andrea Hannos, Carrie Tuck and Erinne Willock), French racers Catherine Marsal and Magali Le Floc’h, New Zealander Melissa Holt, German Karen Bockel and American Kristen LaSasso.

RONA is Canada’s leading hardware and home renovation retailer (www.rona.ca). Esker is a natural spring water from the north of Canada, sold in North America and Asia (www.eskerwater.com).

The team also receives equipment and service sponsorships from many companies, including Colnago, Biemme, Shimano, Michelin, Mavic, Diadora, Limar, Selle Italia, ITM, Look, CatEye, Tacx, Finish Line, Cane Creek, Saris, Power Tap, Cycles Lambert and Club Médico-Sportif. 

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