The final major tune-up before the Tour de France gets underway on Sunday as the Critérium du Dauphiné returns with a stacked field and eight days of demanding racing across southeastern France. It also has a new name: the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.
While Derek Gee-West won’t be back to defend the podium place he earned in 2024, Canadian fans will still have a few lads to cheer for.
Hugo Houle of Alpecin-Premier Tech will be leading his Dutch team. The veteran Quebec rider will use the race as part of his build-up to another Tour de France campaign.
EF Education Easy Post’s Michael Leonard will be there too. There was a chance he would do the Giro, but wasn’t on the roster. Might he be doing his first Grand Tour–and the biggest?
And then there’s Paul Seixas
Speaking of younger riders, much of the attention will be on 19-year-old French sensation Paul Seixas. The Decathlon-CMA-CGS rider has enjoyed a remarkable season, winning the overall title at Itzulia Basque Country and claiming victory at La Flèche Wallonne. His performances have earned him a spot at the Tour de France, where he will become the youngest rider to start cycling’s biggest race in nearly nine decades. But, trivia aside, will be Paul Seixas become an épine dans le flanc of Pogačar? Pogi doesn’t only worry about the French superstar.
Visma-Lease a Bike’s Jonas Vingegaard is flying, after a dominant ride at the Giro. Between Seixas, Vingegaard and Remceo Evenepoel…we are going to have a ball game at the Tour this year. Speaking of Evenepoel, there were rumours he may be a last-minute addition to Sunday’s race, after some media outlets spotted what seemed to be his distinctive Specialized with Olympic flourishes. Many question his choice to skip two months of racing leading up to the Tour, instead focusing on training and altitude camps. He certainly has trolled the media before, so that’s a big TBD.
The other contenders
Either way, the competition is fierce. Juan Ayuso, Isaac del Toro, Matteo Jorgenson, Dani Martínez and Tobias Halland Johannessen are all expected to challenge for the overall title. Wout van Aert is also set to race after his impressive Paris-Roubaix victory earlier this spring.
The race runs from June 7 to 14 and features a team time trial plus a decisive mountain finish atop Grand Colombier. Every stage is being broadcast on FloBikes.com, and Canadian Cycling Magazine will have full reports after each day.
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