Decathlon CMA CGM get their revenge in France as top favorite Riccitello wins this time

The Tour du Jura has been won by Matthew Riccitello. The American rider from Decathlon CMA CGM finished the job by breaking clear on the steep final climb and riding solo across the line. The French team made full use of its numerical strength, as Léo Bisiaux beat Jordan Jegat (TotalEnergies) in the fight for second place.

In France, it is very common to stage several one-day races close together on the calendar. That was also the case this weekend. The Classic Grand Besançon Doubs was held on Friday, where Jordan Jegat (TotalEnergies) came out on top. A day later, racing resumed in the same region: near Besançon, the Tour du Jura was on the menu, with almost the same field at the start.

In the foothills of the Alps, a group of five French riders, joined by a Swede as the international outsider, managed to get away in the opening phase. It gave the continental teams some much-needed exposure again. In the Tour du Jura, however, the first part of the race is also the easiest section: hilly, yes, but never overly demanding. The really difficult stretches were still to come.

The Côte de Thésy was the true opening act of the finale. With 40 kilometers to go, that tricky climb appeared on the route. The breakaway still had a lead of 1:30 at that point, but the climb was hard enough — 3.6 kilometers at 9.1 percent — for that advantage to disappear quickly. Especially if the favorites started shaking things up early. And that is exactly what happened, as Decathlon CMA CGM lit up the race.

There was plenty of action on the climb, but no one really managed to make a decisive move. About twenty riders remained, and on the final stretch, Louis Rouland (Cofidis) and Mattéo Vercher (TotalEnergies) managed to break away. They closed the gap to the last rider in the breakaway, Victor Jean (Elite Fondations). With twenty kilometers to go, they had a three-quarter-minute lead, but the approach to the final climb was grueling.

Among the favorites, however, there was no sign of cooperation. The breakaways were neutralized, and so they didn’t get any closer. It wasn’t until later that the danger of the breakaway group became clear: Unibet Rose Rockets and Decathlon CMA CGM decided to pick up the pace. The gap was already a minute at that point. Nicolas Prodhomme tried to close the gap on his own.

He closed in, but was reeled in by the TotalEnergies riders, who apparently didn’t trust leader Vercher. Decathlon made a move, with Léo Bisiaux accelerating on the flanks of the final climb. He surged past the leaders but took five favorites with him: Jegat was among them. When Riccitello accelerated, however, the Frenchman struggled.

Vercher rode himself into the ground, after which his teammate had to close the gap on the American. He was never far behind, but the gap was too big to close. Riccitello managed to win this time, while teammate Bisiaux took second place again by beating the exhausted Jegat in the sprint.