Visma | Lease a Bike shines in Germany with double victory for in-form man Louis Barré

Louis Barré won the first stage of the Deutschland Tour. The Frenchman from Visma | Lease a Bike was the best in a grueling hilly stage and managed to break away from Paul Magnier in the final kilometers. He easily stayed ahead of the favorites and pulled off a one-two finish: race leader Isaac Del Toro finished second but lost his leader’s jersey. Giulio Ciccone finished third.

What an amazing spectacle we saw on day one of the Deutschland Tour. A prologue had been set up for the riders, featuring a challenging little climb. It gave Isaac Del Toro the chance to grab the yellow jersey right away, and he did so with flair: the Mexican rider from UAE Team Emirates-XRG narrowly beat Paul Magnier.

And in the first real stage, there was no rest. No, a 215-kilometer hilly stage with over 3,000 meters of elevation gain was on the schedule right away. The first section was still the “easiest,” and that’s where three riders broke away: Ellande Larronde (Caja Rural - Seguros RGA) was joined by the REMBE | Rad-net duo, Miguel Heidemann and Ole Theiler.

They held on for a relatively long time, but the tension in the peloton was mounting rapidly. With sixty kilometers to go, we saw Giulio Ciccone (Lidl-Trek) already on the attack, and Louis Barré (Visma | Lease a Bike), Mathias Vacek (Lidl-Trek), and race leader Del Toro also joined the fray. A small group of favorites formed and caught up to the leaders. But it was Visma | Lease a Bike that dictated the pace.

After Bart Lemmen picked up the pace, Wilco Kelderman broke away. The Dutch champion was joined by Théo Hébert (TotalEnergies), and the pair opened up a one-minute lead over the peloton. The two rode together for the final thirty kilometers. They pedaled bravely and held on for a long time, but saw the peloton closing in rapidly in the final ten kilometers.

Lidl-Trek picked up the pace for team leader Ciccone and caught up with Kelderman and company seven kilometers from the finish. Not long after, the race exploded thanks to Mathias Vacek. The Lidl-Trek team leader accelerated, but Barré surged right past him, with Magnier on his wheel. They reached the top together, and Del Toro had to give it his all among the chasers to keep them in sight.

Magnier and Barré charged down the descent and began the final uphill kilometers together. That’s when Magnier, a strong climber, finally cracked: he had to let his compatriot go. Barré kept pushing hard, but behind him, Lidl-Trek took the lead again. Del Toro then launched his attack early, but not early enough: Barré held on.

1. Louis Barré
2. Isaac Del Toro
3. Giulio Ciccone