Paul Lapeira, from the Decathlon-AG2R La Mondiale team, won the French road cycling championship this Sunday in Saint-Martin-de-Landelles (Manche).
He will remember it all his life. Norman Paul Lapeira became French cycling champion by winning the road race held on Sunday in the English Channel. The Decathlon-AG2R runner, who showed himself the strongest on the 240 km long route, lives five minutes away in Saint-Martin-de-Landelles, where he raised his arms.
At 24, Paul Lapeira beat Julien Bernard, who moved up one place on the podium after his bronze medal in 2023, and Thomas Gachignard, to succeed Valentin Madouas.
“I dreamed of it, I’m five kilometers from home, these are the roads I’ve been training on since I was little, the race was perfect,” declared the young Normand, very moved after his victory. The native of Fougères (Ille-et-Vilaine) continues the momentum of his excellent start to the season, which saw him explode at the highest level, with a first World Tour victory during the second stage of the Tour of the Basque Country in April. A little over a month before the Olympic Games, and while the composition of the France team will be announced on July 8, he sent a message to Thomas Voeckler, the coach, who was present.
More generally, Vincent Lavenu’s team finishes a perfect French Championships, since Lapeira’s coronation comes two days after Bruno Armirail’s title during the time trial, like a successful first half of the season where she now stands at 26 victories.
