After ending his road career in the offseason, John Gadret’s return to his roots of cyclocross has gotten off to a good start after he took bronze in the French nationals, racing for Steve Chainel’s Cross Team by G4.

“My career is over since September,” Gadret told L’Équipe. “It was Steve [Chainel] and my wife who pushed be to be here. I said ‘Ok, I know myself well, I’ll get a medal.’ For me, the bronze is a victory.”

Gadret says that even thought he was a good road rider, whose best moments were a stage win and third on GC at the 2011 Giro, his road career is over for certain.

“In any case, I won’t do any more road because when you’ve done the Tour or the Giro, your place is no longer in a peloton of amateurs,” Gadret said. “I’ll do mountain biking instead, maybe some trails. I’ve drawn a line through it [road racing] and seeing teams at training camps, I don’t feel any desire for it. But I’d just like to say that, in the professional milieu, they’re all sharks.”