And Guernalec can hunt for another one! While he had initially signed for the CIC U Nantes Atlantique in August, Victor Guernalec will finally take the plunge directly into the WorldTour next season and turn professional chez Arkéa-B&B Hotelswhere he will meet his older brother in 2025 Thibault Guernalec. Member of the training Bourg-en-Bresse Ain Cycling for three seasons, the champion of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes 2023 ago showed undeniable qualities and was among the very best amateurs of the 2024 season, with six victories and a podium (3rd) in the general classification of the very recent Kreiz Breizh Elitesa class 2 race. Having until now only had five young riders ride of its development team Arkéa-B&B Hotels Continentalethe Breton team thus closes its economic transfer window with the 24-year-old from Finistère, validating a workforce of 27 riders for 2025.
Video – Victor Guernalec was to join Anthony Ravard’s team
Explanations from Victor Guernalec and Emmanuel Hubert
What does this time on the World Tour within the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team mean to you, Victor?
Victor Guernalec: “It's a dream for me, since I'm Breton, to sign for a team from my territory and what's more, playing at the UCI World Tour level. It's something very strong. My brother, Thibault, has been a professional with this team since 2018. I have been following Emmanuel Hubert's team since 2010. I went to see her when she raced at Châteaulin. I have seen this training evolve over the years, and when I was younger I was part of the training cycle of this team. Everything connects me to ARKEA-B&B HOTELS, in fact. And this winter this opportunity to join her presented itself to me.”
Your ambitions for 2025?
VG : “Let the collective shine, so that we all obtain as many victories as possible under the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS jersey. And if my card is given to me on certain occasions, I will take it. I want to discover the professional level and the most beautiful UCI World Tour races. I know the step is high, but I am motivated and I will do everything to meet the expectations that the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team will place on me.”
How does it feel to run with your brother, Thibault?
VG: “It's also a dream to be able to race with my brother Thibault, it hasn't happened to us that many times during our career. I don't have too many references to him in the race. It's going to be cool, but it will also be up to us to balance the work. Because we will be both brothers and colleagues, it will necessarily be a special relationship. But I can't wait to experience these types of emotions. I will also meet Louis Rouland who is my training companion in Aix-les-Bains, but also Ewen Costiou and Mathis Le Berre with whom I raced under the same jersey in the amateur ranks.
Emmanuel Hubert, General Manager
“A Breton in a Breton team, what could be more normal! Victor Guernalec, who was among the best riders of the 2024 amateur season, will join us as the 27th and last rider of the UCI World Tour ARKEA-B&B HOTELS structure, as of January 1, 2025. Victor is a rider we know well for having had him within our training cycle for a few seasons. Unfortunately, several injuries delayed his development at the highest level. In 2024, he had a very good year concluded with numerous successes, thus demonstrating that he had rediscovered all the qualities that we knew from young people. Victor is a young runner who is driven by a great desire to succeed, and there is no doubt that his acclimatization to the professional world will be rapid, because we sense in him a runner who is hungry.”
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