Aurélien Paret-Peintre: «Pretty good for a comeback.»
«I hadn't raced since Liège-Bastogne-Liège (25 April) and finishing second in a difficult race like this is pretty satisfying. I've just come back from a training camp at altitude where we racked up quite a few kilometres and elevation gain, and we were able to familiarise ourselves with the course. Today, we had a great team race, which is motivating for the future. Despite everything, on the final climb, Guillaume Martin went off on his own and I fought for second place. Now I'm heading to the Critérium du Dauphiné on Saturday, where I hope my form will continue to improve.»
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We have three riders in the top ten of the Mercan’Tour Classic Alpes Maritimes. Behind Aurélien Paret-Peintre (2nd) are Mathias Frank (5th) and Jaakko Hänninen (10th).
The information
One more day for Bouchard
Geoffrey Bouchard now has 136 points in the Giro d'Italia mountain classification. He took the lead today on the first mountain pass of the day. On Wednesday, he will wear the blue jersey for the eighth consecutive day.
«We had apocalyptic conditions all day long. I managed to get into the first breakaway with quite a few big names. I'm happy to have earned 40 more points. Now there's still quite a way to go to Milan. The rest day comes at just the right time, but I'm going to hang in there.»
