Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes – Stage 4 – The breakaway held off the peloton

Stage 4 of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes had an uncertain outcome, and it lived up to expectations. While a large breakaway group took advantage of the steep first half of the stage to build a lead, the peloton, in hot pursuit, was never able to catch the escapees. Four seconds—that’s what he was short of at the finish line. A line that Bryan Coquard crossed in 12th place.

Bingen Fernandez, sports director: 
"It was a 50-50 stage between the breakaway and the sprint. We tried to play it a little, to try to be in the big groups at the start of the stage. We missed the breakaway; we weren’t there. So we had Plan B, which was Le Coq for the sprint. We gave it everything to try to make it to the sprint. In the end, we were there, close—it was a large and strong breakaway.
We were almost there, but we were just a little short. In the end, Bryan finished twelfth in the peloton sprint.  I’m happy with the team’s attitude; I think they did a great job. We tried to close the gap and came within just a few meters. In the end, Bryan finished twelfth. We’re happy with the team’s attitude."