Nine stages of the Martinique International Cycling Tour, with Guillaume Malle as the overall winner. The Véranda Rideau rider, who donned the yellow jersey at the end of the second stage—which he won in style in Fort-de-France on Sunday, July 10—held onto it at the finish line despite a few close calls. The Martinique team, which certainly placed four riders—including two based in France (Marc Flavien of EC Saint-Etienne in 2nd place and Willy Roseau of Véranda Rideau Sarthe in 4th)—among the top 10 in the overall time standings, was unable to turn the situation in its favor.
IN THE END
The rider from Caen won the stage ahead of Marc Flavien from Martinique by 2 minutes and 4 seconds, Boris Carène from Guadeloupe by 3 minutes and 11 seconds, and Willy Roseau, who finished 4th, by 3 minutes and 29 seconds. Thirty-eight of the 81 riders completed the stage. Martinique placed five riders in the top 10, including four from the national team (Marc Flavien, 2nd and winner of two stages; Willy Roseau, 4th; Cédric Eustache, 7th; and Emile Demazy, 8th).
Willy Roseau, a fan favorite in Martinique, will team up with Guillaume Malle under the Véranda Rideau banner for the Tour d’Alsace. He will not compete in the Tour de Guadeloupe.
The Guadeloupean team, which had come to win the Tour de Martinique, had mixed results. Boris Carène, who had withdrawn last year, finished third, 3 minutes and 11 seconds behind Guillaume Malle, who succeeded Japan’s Myataka Shimizu as the race winner.. Luc Edon. [Note: Full article in this week's weekly magazine…]
(Our Front Page: Alfred Defontis should be very pleased with the 2011 Tour)
