"Without races we can't do our job," shouts stage winner Arnaud De Lie, explaining why he continued in Bessèges (while some Lotto riders didn’t)
Cycling
Follow IDL Pro Cycling on Google
Stay up to date with the best cycling news by making us a preferred source on Google.
Follow us on GoogleArnaud De Lie won the third stage of the Ster van Bessèges. The young Belgian from Lotto was the best in a sprint after the race was disrupted early on due to another vehicle on the course. As a result, many teams abandoned the race, and only a small peloton remained. The Lie is also the new leader in the GC since eight teams dropped out.
ADVERTISEMENT
Søren Waerenskjold won Thursday's stage. The big Norwegian of Uno-X Mobility was the fastest in a sprint of a depleted peloton, but that was not the main talking point afterward. With 17 kilometers to go, a car drove onto the course. The vehicle had to reverse, and the riders managed to avoid the car. But the harm was already done, as the riders had to apply the brakes, and a crash followed. Maxim Van Gils was the biggest victim: the Belgian had to abandon the race.
With some reluctance, the riders continued on their way today. Before they had been on their bikes for an hour, things went wrong again: at a roundabout, the pack ran into another car. The riders had had enough. They slammed on the brakes, and a discussion with race officials commenced. After a lengthy debate, the race continued anyway, but without eight teams: Soudal Quick-Step, INEOS Grenadiers, and Unibet Tietema Rockets, among others, decided not to continue.
Read more below the Tweet!
Remaining sprinters grab their chance in shortened stage
With about seventy men still in the race, the race continued, but it was shortened: because of safety and lost time, the last local lap was eliminated. As a result, the course was shorter and flatter. After the restart, cycling 'just' continued, and there was also an 'early' breakaway: Brit Oliver Knight (Cofidis) was joined by Valentin Retailleau (TotalEnergies), Hugo Aznar (Equipo Kern Pharma) and Antoine Hue (CIC-U-Nantes). They got some gap, but never much: the remaining sprint teams, especially Arkéa B&B Hotels, did work to keep the breakaway riders in sight.
The battle erupted in the hills of the final 40 kilometers: fewer teams means less control, and so it rained attacks (in addition to buckets of water). That eventually caused a shake-up: among others, Benjamin Thomas (Cofidis), Kevin Geniets (Groupama-FDJ), Pierre Latour, and Alexandre Delettre (TotalEnergies) were in a six-man group. They made their way over to the leading group, so it was suddenly all hands on deck for the peloton. On the final slope, it came together again before De Lie sprinted to victory in the pouring rain.
De Lie defends the Star of Bessèges organization
After the race, the Belgian stage winner was remarkably kind to the organization, which thus saw its race decapitated after two incidents in a row. "It was a dilemma. The Star of Bessèges would probably have struggled to continue if everyone had stopped. So, I didn't ask myself the question to continue cycling. We respect the organizers; without races, we can't do our job."
In an official press release from his team, Lotto, De Lie continued, "I initially got into the car to warm up. Over the radio, we heard that if we didn't restart, it would be the end of the Etoile de Bessèges for good. That hit me. Rider safety comes first. A car on the course is unacceptable. But at the same time, races like these can only continue to exist because of the riders. It's thanks to these organizers that we have the opportunity to live our passion."
However, it was remarkable that not the entire Lotto team continued, but only De Lie and Baptiste Veistroffer. "We lost contact with the rest of our team amidst all the chaos. We were already moving forward again, while the others were preparing to head back to the team bus, just like many other teams. It was pure chaos. Around 60 continued. I hope I made the right choice. I also did it out of respect for the organizers—they have an incredibly tough job. And I won, in this weather—which I love—after such a crazy day. It felt a bit heroic. I'm really happy with this victory."
Stage 3 Star of Bessèges 2025:
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
IDL-productions
Celia Gery won the European cyclocross championship while awaiting surgery: 'It'll be a new beginning'
Dutch team coach De Knegt annoyed by European Cyclocross Championships dispute: "A bit of a let down"
Glasgow set to shine as World Cup demand outstrips expectations and Mason eyes first home cyclocross race
Pogačar, Vingegaard and Van Aert went faster again in 2026... except when they didn't
Team GB dominate, China on the rise, Lavreysen the best ever? Five takeaways from the 2026 Track World Championships
Latest Cycling News
Eddie Dunbar wins Vuelta stage as Pinarello-Q36.5 put three riders in top five and Roglič attacks
Tom Pidcock ends 2026 fifth in the world, with Ciccone and Hayter arriving at Pinarello for 2027
Picnic PostNL's WorldTour uncertainty has five rival teams, and Tom Pidcock, watching the UCI closely
Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado's injury isn't as bad as feared, but she may not line up for a while
TotalEnergies rescued from collapse, but rider recruitment remains a problem before 27th Tour de France appearance
Popular Cycling News
Sven Nys spoke with Lucinda Brand straight after European Championship drama: 'Is that enough to ultimately relegate someone'
Fears of serious injury to Alvarado, bronze medalist, after the European Cyclocross Championships
Disqualified Schreiber skips European Championship podium: 'I’m very grateful that she said that'
Picnic PostNL's WorldTour uncertainty has five rival teams, and Tom Pidcock, watching the UCI closely
Schreiber slams disrespectful European cyclocross championship judges: 'They didn’t even let me finish speaking'
Latest Comments
- Eight riders told to go for stages, and nobody gets one—hard to know what the plan was there. It’ll be interesting to see whether they pick a clear leader next time.bikebuffj10-11-2026
- Was Bernal’s 20th place really their best GC result? I thought he might have finished higher. Either way, it sounds like a rough Tour for the whole team.gearguru3310-11-2026
- Five days in breaks with no stage win is a painful stat. The team had chances, but they need to turn those opportunities into results.julien10-11-2026
- The Onley Vuelta example makes sense: a team with someone to rally around often looks much more cohesive. Hopefully INEOS can build on that rather than expecting a quick return to the Sky years.cadencekingm10-11-2026
- Thomas is right about the ambiguity. Eight riders all chasing stages can end up pulling in different directions, even if nobody’s deliberately working against anyone. They need a clearer plan once the GC leaders are out.robert6510-11-2026
- What a mess. The report makes it sound as though nobody properly explained the decision, and that’s hard to defend.jennifer1910-11-2026
- I’m still learning the rules: does moving left in a sprint automatically bring a penalty, or does it depend on whether the other rider is blocked? It sounds like Brand wasn’t impeded here.patriciaw10-11-2026
- A final decision still needs a proper explanation. If the federation’s complaint goes nowhere, I hope the officials at least review how they handled the riders afterwards.michael5410-11-2026
- Fair play to Lucinda for saying Marie had won fair and square. That kind of sportsmanship matters, especially after such a controversial decision.raceready710-11-2026
- Schreiber beat Brand on the road, so the jury needed to explain clearly why that slight deviation warranted relegation. Being cut off before she could give her account sounds appalling.lindae10-11-2026
