Dorian Godon
"I put the team's work into practice".
"This victory feels great! It rewards all the hard work I've put in over the last few weeks, after a difficult summer. I'm really happy to raise my arms again.
I felt that the three weeks of La Vuelta a España gave me strength. I wanted to finish the year well. So winning is perfect.
We had a great team at the start of the race. Stan (Dewulf) spent the day at the front, he was very strong. Behind them, Jordan (Labrosse) and Valentin (Retailleau) worked hard all day to protect us, then we played our different cards in the final. Franck (Bonnamour) and Benoît (Cosnefroy) were vigilant in the final laps and placed us perfectly before the last climb with Andrea (Vendrame).
With 250 metres to go, I was feeling really strong so I went for it and never looked back. It's an effort I'm particularly fond of, and it's great to be able to put the teamwork into practice.
We've still got the Veneto Classic on Sunday (October 15), where again we'll have a great collective effort and a strong determination to emulate today's result."
"Iwas determined to finish the year on a high note.
The news
First Frenchman to win the Giro del Veneto
Dorian Godon became the first rider French rider to win the Giro del Veneto in 86 editions.
At this morning's briefing, we had decided that Dorian (Godon) and Franck (Bonnamour) would ride the last few laps, leaving Benoît (Cosnefroy) and Andrea (Vendrame) to wait for the very end of the race," explains Cyril Dessel, sports director of the AG2R CITROËN team.
In the end, as the last difficulty was less difficult than we'd imagined, we swapped the roles of Benoît and Dorian, and it worked perfectly.
I'd urged the guys to race as a team, in order to finish the season in a good frame of mind, and this was very well respected.
Stan (Dewulf) had a great day up front, before Dorian took this fine victory, which rewards the investment of all riders and the staff."
9
The number
Dorian Godon's victory at the Giro del Veneto is the ninth for the AG2R CITROËN team this season.
The 27-year-old Frenchman also won the Flèche Brabançonne.
Felix Gall raised his arms on stage 17 of the Tour de France and stage 4 of the Tour de Suisse.
Aurélien Paret-Peintre won stage 4 of the Giro d'Italia and stage 3 of the Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var.
Nans Peters won the Trofeo Laigueglia.
Greg Van Avermaet won the Boucles de l'Aulne, as did Marc Sarreau on stage 4 of the Tour Poitou - Charentes.
Clément Venturini became French cyclo-cross champion.
