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Sunday, February 8, 2026

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Tour de France: 2019

Bill and Carol McGann's book The Story of the Tour de France, 2019: A Year of New Faces is available in both Kindle eBook and audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

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Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana stage 4 team reports

We posted the report from stage winner Remco Evenepoel's Team Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe with the results.

Here's the report from Team INEOS Grenadiers:

Magnus Sheffield and Ben Turner finished in sixth and eighth place respectively on the queen stage of the Volta Comunitat Valenciana.

The fourth day of action provided a tough, 172-kilometre test, with the Grenadiers duo both present as the race arrived at the final pair of climbs.

A select peloton split on the Cumbre del Sol ascent, with both riders setting their own tempo to eventually cross the line solo. Remco Evenepoel (Red Bull - Bora - Hansgrohe) used the climb as a launchpad for victory, winning the stage by 24 seconds to move into the race lead.

Remco Evenepoel won Valenciana stage four.

With one day remaining, Sheffield and Turner occupy the same GC positions as their stage placings, 1:02 and 1:56 respectively back on Evenepoel.

Turner's performance was particularly strong across an extremely hilly parcours.

24 hours after his rousing stage victory, AJ August didn't enjoy the same luck on Saturday, going down in a crash alongside teammate Victor Langellotti. The latter would battle on before eventually abandoning the race.
On his climbing performance, Ben Turner explained:

“I had good legs which was nice but I don’t really enjoy the climbing to be honest. It was a bit over my level I think, but I tried to do my best and see what was possible with the shape. It was a good day so I was quite impressed. Also Magnus was up there as well and was looking really good. I think we rode really well today after the win yesterday.

“I asked the DS yesterday if I could go really deep and see what was possible. They went at quite a hard pace on the big climb out the back. There were only 20 guys over the top so I thought maybe the legs were quite good. I was a bit unsure what would happen on the second to last one – but the legs responded quite well. I tried to ride like it was for a result and see what the legs could do, but it was just really really hard.”

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Here's the Volta a la Valenciana report from Team Soudal Quick-Step:

Steff Cras rode a great race on the penultimate stage of Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana, as part of a breakaway that forced the peloton to chase hard in order to bring them back and fight for victory.

The experienced Belgian, who is racing this week for the first time in the Soudal Quick-Step jersey, was one of the front group’s main engines. Once the move went clear on the well-known Coll de Rates, Cras took some solid pulls there and helped the break build up a buffer of more than three minutes. However, once the peloton changed the tempo, that lead came down and hovered around the one-minute mark for the remainder of the stage.

Stef Cras winning stage one of the 2025 Vuelta Asturias.

Sensing the danger, Cras attacked on Alto de la Fustera and forced a selection, only one other rider being capable of responding to this acceleration. As they exited Calpe – where our team holds its winter training camps – the duo continued to hold a 30-second advantage on the chasers, but it was all over on Puig de la Llorença, the last big difficulty of the stage. Once he was caught by the bunch, Cras did his best to remain there and help his much younger teammate Viktor Soenens.

Once the bunch exploded, Soenens rode to the beat of his own drum and booked a place in the third chasing group. The 20-year-old punched above his weight in Saturday’s tough finale and finished in tenth position, after a powerful surge on the uphill drag to the line in Teulada Moraira. Thanks to this strong ride, our feeder’s squad Belgian rider jumped four places in the general classification ahead of the race’s last stage.


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Tour of Oman stage one reports

We posted the race organizer's report with the results.

Here's the report from Team Groupama-FDJ United:

Unsurprisingly, the opening day of the Tour of Oman concluded this Saturday with a bunch sprint. After 170 kilometres without any real obstacles, Juan Sebastian Molano claimed victory, while Thibaud Gruel tested himself at the finish and eventually secured 13th place. The route of the second stage should suit the Groupama-FDJ United cycling team better on Sunday.

Sebastian Molano wins the first stage.

The day after the lively Muscat Classic, the Tour of Oman got underway with a very linear stage toward Bimmah Sink Hole this Saturday. Despite a few uphill sections early on, a bunch sprint was widely expected—and it was never truly threatened by a trio of breakaway riders. Everything actually came back together with more than twenty kilometres to go.

“We knew there was a strong chance the stage would end in a sprint, and on top of that there was mostly a headwind throughout the first part of the race,” explained Thierry Bricaud. “So the goal was to stay calm, recover from yesterday, and focus on the sprint. That’s exactly what the guys did very well, but we inevitably lacked a bit of coordination, as we don’t have riders who are used to setting up sprints in this race.”

Kept near the front by his teammates over the final fifteen kilometres, Thibaud Gruel then tried to make his way through in the closing moments. Starting from too far back, however, he couldn’t move up beyond 13th place. “It’s a bit frustrating, but you can feel that the guys are going well and that they’re motivated,” added Thierry. “That’s encouraging, and it’s going to pay off in the next few days.” Groupama-FDJ United also welcomed back Rudy Molard, who was ill and didn’t start the day before. “He had a decent day,” said Thierry. “The conditions were perfect to get back into rhythm. That’s good for what’s to come.” On Sunday, the peloton will return to some of the roads used during the Muscat Classic, before finishing at Yitti Hills (1.8 km at 5.4%). “The last hour and a half of racing is punchier, the race will be harder—and that’s fine by us,” Thierry concluded.


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And here's the Tour of Oman report from Team Visma | Lease a Bike:

Nineteen-year-old Patryk Goszczurny showcased his talent in the opening stage of the Tour of Oman. The Polish rider, who normally competes for the Development Team, launched an early attack and, together with his breakaway companions, animated the race for 130 kilometers.

In the opening stage, three riders, including Goszczurny, quickly went on the offensive. The breakaway held the lead for a long time and shaped the race, but a bunch sprint ultimately proved unavoidable. The Dutch team saw all their riders cross the finish line safely. Sebastian Molano claimed victory in the first stage.

“It was a fantastic day,” reflected the nineteen-year-old after the stage. “I did aim to join the early break, but I never expected it to turn out like this. I felt really strong today, and to have my efforts rewarded with two jerseys is amazing.”

Patryk Goszczurny after stage one.

Goszczurny now leads the young rider classification and also holds the jersey for the most combative rider. “It would be great to take one of these jerseys home. The young rider jersey might be tough, but the combative rider jersey would be a wonderful goal. Of course, it all depends on how my legs feel,” Goszczurny concluded with a smile.

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