The French Cycling Federation announced this Friday the Olympic selection for track endurance events. The French team will arrive at the Games with arguments to put forward. The pursuers remain on two world medals. In the American category, the French women are reigning European Champions and have not come off the world podium since 2020. Their male counterparts are not left out with Benjamin Thomas, one of the best all-rounders who still medaled at the last World Championship, and the American brought back title and medals during the Olympiad.
Thanks to the selection of Victoire Berteau in the road race, there will be five women but four men in the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines velodrome. Who says selection, says choice, and this choice was difficult for national coach Steven Henry as he explains to DirectVelo.
DirectVelo: You will be able to count on five girls, how will you distribute the roles?
Steven Henry: Clara Copponi and Marion Borras will compete in the Madison and Valentine Fortin, the Omnium. In the pursuit tournament, having five girls will allow us to make changes between rounds.
“OBJECTIVE TO MAKE A MEDAL IN TEAM PURSUIT AND AMERICAN”
How did you choose the American pair?
We have often rotated the squad in recent years with a title at the European Championship (with Valentine Fortin and Marion Borras, Editor’s note) and world medals. It was very, very complex to choose because all our women are performing well. Clara showed her ability to read the race well and she was in all the world medals. Marion is very strong physically, a bit like Katie Archibald (who broke his leg and is withdrawing from the Olympics, Editor’s note) and who can plug the gaps.
Clara Copponi is therefore not going to triple the tests…
The schedule is busy for her. For the girls, the objective is to medal in the team pursuit and in the American. In the Open, we arrive as an outsider. Valentine brings a different profile from that of Clara. By being less expected than the big favorites, she can do well and find the opening thanks to her good reading of the race. At the last World Championship, she was 3rd before the points race.
How did you choose the riders for the men’s team?
It was very complicated because there are only four of them plus a substitute. We gave priority to peloton races. We will compete in the team pursuit as outsiders, as for the Women’s Open. Valentin Tabellion will be the starting starter in the pursuit. I took Thomas Denis for his versatility, he can be a starter but also occupy all the other positions. I favored the Thomas-Boudat pair for the American, it is a technical-tactical choice. The two riders are very complementary and Thomas Boudat showed his effectiveness at the European Championship.
“I HAVE NOTHING TO RECOMMISE HIM”
Is the choice of Oscar Nilsson-Julien as replacement also with a view to the peloton races?
Even though we have a little less perspective with him in pursuit, Oscar is versatile and efficient enough to overcome a problem both in team pursuit and in peloton races. (2nd in the Nations Cup Open in Hong Kong, Editor’s note). I could also have taken Donavan Grondin as a replacement but it was difficult because it meant putting the road on hold for the whole month of July.
On the other hand, you did not select Corentin Ermenault…
I have nothing to reproach him for. It was a complex choice, I told him at the end of our last internship. He is less versatile, he only occupies positions 4 or 3. This year, he is unable to regain the level of his second stint which was his in Glasgow. And I couldn’t imagine Corentin in a replacement position.
How will the end of the preparation go?
We are in Tignes until July 7 when we will go down to Morgins, near Châtel and we will ride on the track of the World Center in Aigle. Benjamin Thomas is not in Tignes. He is racing this weekend at the Ghent Grand Prix and he will compete in an Omnium at the Six Days of Fiorenzuola (July 1, Editor’s note) and will join us in Morgins. We will return on July 15 and we will meet again on the 19th to go to the Roubaix velodrome from July 20 to 26. The enduring will be present at the Opening Ceremony. We left for seven weeks of living together but we planned small breaks so that the athletes could reunite with their loved ones. That’s one of the lessons from Glasgow last year, where we didn’t give the athletes enough time.
