One of the things that characterize the traditional cycling countries is the fact that many of their regions have their own local stage races. As one of cycling’s traditional heartlands, France is no exception and one of the biggest regional tours is the three-day Tour de Picardie which is held this weekend. Taking place in one of the flattest parts of the country, it is traditionally an affair for the sprinters and they will again be ready to battle it out on three flat courses in 2016.

 

Italy, France, Belgium and Spain have traditionally been regarded as cycling’s heartlands but the four countries have a different culture. While Italy and Belgium have mostly had one-day races in their country, it is always all about stage racing in Spain. France is a bit of a mix as it has a bit of everything in a very diverse calendar.

 

Like in Spain, many regions have their own local stage race and unlike in the big country on the Iberian Peninsula, most of them have survived the economic crisis. Most are relatively small 2.2 events on the UCI calendar but some of them stand out with their 2.1 status. Tour du Poitou-Charents, Tour du Limousen and Tour du Gevaudan are held in the second half of the year, Tour du Haut Var and Tour La Provence are held in February and in May, the Tour de Picardie is on the menu. A few years ago, it formed a solid block of racing with the Circuit de Lorraine but after the latter race has disappeared, it is now the only major stage race in France in May.

 

First held in 1936 by the Cyclo Club Crellois, the race is one of the oldest on the calendar. Until 1999, it was known as the Tour de l’Oise and after two editions with the name Tour de l’Oise et de Picardie, it gots its current name in 2002. It was once a very big event that has been won by riders like Bernard Hinault, Miguel Indurain, Jean Stablinski and Cyrille Guimard and even though it doesn’t carry the same prestige nowadays, it is still one of the French races that have traditionally been able to attract several foreign pro teams. Most of the field is French but the race has only had five national winners in this decade.

 

Like many other races, the Tour de Picardie has been battling for survival. It was held under the aegis of ASO for several years which gave it significant stability but last year, VC Cote Picardie took over as organizers. They have managed to keep the race on the calendar and even though the fact that it is no longer associated with the Tour de France organizers has made it less attractive for the foreign teams, they have gathered solid fields for their first two editions.

 

Picardie is one of the flattest regions in France and this is reflected in the list of winners. Very often the race comes down to three consecutive bunch sprints and even though some of them have often been uphill, the sprinters have come to the fore. Gone are the days when Hinault and Indurain could win the race as there is no longer a time trial and in recent years, riders like Arnaud Demare, Marcel Kittel, John Degenkolb, Romain Feillu, Ben Swift, Sebastien Chavanel, Robert Hunter, Jimmy Casper and Tom Boonen are some of the fast finishers that have won the race.

 

Last year it was Kris Boeckmans who continued a very successful spring by winning the race. The Belgian won the bunch sprints on stage 1 and 3 and finished second behind Andrea Guardini on the second day, allowing him to end the race with a 10-second advantage over the Italian rival. Evaldas Siskevicius was third.

 

The course

As said, there aren’t many topographical challenges in Picardie and this is reflected in the course which always includes three relatively flat stages. That is again the case in 2016 as the organizers have designed three courses that are very likely to allow the sprinters to come to the fore.

 

Stage 1:

The race will kick off with a relatively classic Tour de Picardie stage that will bring the riders overs 176.6km from Chaumont-en-Vexin to Formerie. There are two small climbs in the middle part of the stage but the terrain is largely flat. The stage ends with one lap of a 20.6km finishing circuit. In the finale, it is slightly uphill until the flamme rouge and then it’s a flat final kilometre at the end of a long straight road with no turns in the final three kilometres.

 

As always, the wind can wreak havoc on the peloton in this area but unless it’s a windy day, it should come down to a bunch sprint. The easy finale means that it’s a great finish for the real power sprinters and the very fast guys.

 

 

 

Stage 2:

The terrain gets slightly hillier for stage 2 which will bring the riders over 180.3km from Fequieres-en-Vimeu to Flixecourt. There are three categorized climbs in the first two thirds of the stage but the real challenge will be the 17.3km finishing circuit that the riders will cover twice. It has a small uncategorized climb at the midpoint but the final 5km are mainly flat, with a slightly uphill final kilometre. There are a few turns in the technicalpenultimate kilometre and then a final left-hand corner with 800m to go.

 

Like in the first stage, the wind will be the main danger but if it’s calm it should be another sprint even though the small climb on the circuit can be used for attacks. The finale is more technical and this makes lead-outs more important. Finally, it is worth noticing that there will be intermediate sprints at the first two passages of the line which means that it offers a chance to go for bonus seconds as the break is likely to have been caught at this late point in the stage.

 

 

 

Stage 3:

The final stage is very similar to the first two stages and will bring the riders over 170.2km from Saint-Quentin to Guise. There are three categorized climbs on the menu, with the final short 1.1km ascent coing with 15.1km to go on the 21.2km finishing circuit that will be covered once. The circuit is lumpy but the final three kilometres are flat, with a small uphill drag to the line. There are two runs inside the final kilometre.

 

The stage should pan out like the first two and so it should be another bunch sprint unless it is very windy. Bonus seconds will be important in this final stage and so the final intermediate sprint with 35.2km to go could come into play. The finale is a bit more technical and this will make it even more important to have a strong team.

 

 

 

The favourites

The Tour de Picardie is a race for sprinters and nothing suggests that it will be any different in 2016. The stages are relatively classic and this year there is no really tough uphill sprint. This means that it should be a race for the pure sprinters.

 

However, it will be important to keep an eye on the wind. Friday and Saturday will be pretty windy. On the first day, there will be crosswind in the final part and on stage 2 there will be crosswind for most of the stage. There may even be some rain on both days. On Sunday, the weather is better and as it will mainly be a headwind or a tailwind, this should be the easiest and most stressful stage.

 

The finales of the final two stages are a bit technical and this means that positioning skills and strong lead-outs are important. Overall the race should be won by a strong sprinter with a great team that can both keep him up there in the sprints and in the windy sections.

 

On paper, Nacer Bouhanni is the best sprinter in the race. The Cofidis rider returned to racing in Dunkirk but failed to win a stage. It was evident that his form was not at its best but when it came to pure speed in the flat finales, he was the fastest rider in the race, even faster than the dominant Bryan Coquard. However, his lead-out train which was actually the strongest in the race, failed throughout the entire race and they never got things right.

 

For this race, the train should be even better though. Christophe Laporte who is a very important piece in the puzzle will be back to join forces with Borut Bozic and Geoffrey Soupe. On paper, it’s probably the best train here and with five days of racing and a bit of practice, they should be riding better than they did in Dunkirk. Furthermore, Bouhanni is likely to be stronger and as he is great at positioning himself, he is always very consistent. That’s important in this race and so he is our favourite.

 

Last year Andrea Guardini won a stage in this race and he will be aiming for overall success in one of the few stage races in which he can actually go for GC. The year has been a frustrating one as he hasn’t achieved any results in Europe. He hasn’t had much support in the sprints and it has been a bit embarrassing for Astana that they have done so little for their top sprinters. Here the team is fully devoted to him but again it is not very strong. In the past, Guardini also positioned himself very poorly but luckily he has improved in that aspect. The flat sprints should suit him perfectly and when it comes to pure speed, only Bouhanni can match. In Qatar he has proved that he is strong in the wind but his lack of team support could be costly. He needs a bit of luck to win the race and always be in a good position but he is fast enough to win the race.

 

Wanty go into the race with Kenny Dehaes as their leader. After 18 injury-marred months, he returned to his winning ways in Dunkirk where he beat the in-form Coquard. A few years ago, he was sprinting very well and he seems to be getting closer to that level. He has Danilo Napolitano for the lead-out and the Italian should make sure that Dehaes is consistently up there in the sprints. He has the form and the speed to win.

 

Fortuneo-Vital Concept go into the race with three sprinters. After his fantastic sprint in Denain where he took the biggest win of his career, Daniel McLay is likely to be the captain and he will be supported by Yauheni Hutarovich and Boris Vallee. However, he hasn’t raced since he took that win one month ago so his form is very uncertain. Furthermore, he has only done one really outstanding sprint in his career so it remains to be seen if he can back it up here. Hutarovich is probably the second option but he is no longer as fast as he once was.

 

Lotto Soudal are here with three cards to play. Kris Boeckmans is the defending champion but even though he did a sprint in Turkey and showed that he is getting better, he is probably not strong enough to win yet. Jens Debusschere could be a better card but it is his first race since he crashed out of Gent-Wevelgem. Jasper de Buyst could also get his chance but he is not as fast as his teammates. Hence, he is very unlikely to be at his best. With Marcel Sieberg and Tiesj Benoot, the team has a great lead-out and their roster is very strong so they should be the best in the crosswinds. Then it remains to be seen whether the sprinters are good enough to finish it off.

 

With Coquard heading to California, Direct Energie will be supporting Thomas Boudat. The Frenchman doesn’t get many chances to sprint but he has proved his speed. He won Clasica Corsica last year and he was second behind McLay in Denain. Recently, he showed good form by taking fourth in the tough first stage in Yorkshire. However, the team is not very strong so he probably won’t be consistent enough to win.

 

IAM have two captains: Jonas Van Genechten and Sondre Holst Enger. The latter showed great form by winning the tough uphill sprint on the final day in Croatia but in a flat finish Van Genechten is probably the fastest. It remains to be seen who will be the leader but the one who gets the nod will have a solid train at his disposal as Aleksejs Saramotins is also here. With flat finales, Van Genechten has the best chance.

 

FDJ go into the race with a strong train to support Lorrenzo Manzin. The youngster has not had much luck yet in 2016 but he has occasionally shown his speed. Unfortunately, he probably misses the consistency to win this kind of stage win but with one of the best trains, it won’t be impossible.

 

Consistency is the strength for the in-form Baptiste Planckaert who has been one of the best riders of the year. However, he is probably not fast enough in flat finales to win the race. The same goes for Rudy Barbier who has been sprinting well all year but is better suited to harder finales.

 

Romain Feillu, Yannis Yssaad, Benjamin Giraud, Andre Looij, Maxime Daniel, Boris Vallee, David Menut and Yannick Martinez are all fast guys who will try in the sprints but it will be difficult for them to win the race.

 

***** Nacer Bouhanni

**** Andrea Guardini, Kenny Dehaes

*** Daniel McLay, Jens Debusschere, Kris Boeckmans, Jasper de Buyst, Thomas Boudat, Jonas Van Genechten

** Sondre Holst Enger, Lorrenzo Manzin, Baptiste Planckaert, Yauheni Hutarovich

* Romain Feillu, Yannis Yssaad, Benjamin Giraud, Andre Looij, Maxime Daniel, Boris Vallee, David Menut, Yannick Martinez