6 riders in the Top10, 1 in the Top10 - France's European Championships depth impresses but results disappoint
Cycling
France was one of the strongest teams at the 2026 European Championships but did not deliver on their expectations. The French team featured six riders in the Top10 but had a ninth place by the time riders arrived in Sencur.
Léo Bisiaux, Mathys Rondel, Romain Grégoire, Kévin Vauquelin, Alex Baudin, Pavel Sivakov, Clément Braz Afonso and Julien Bernard formed an eight-rider group that could aim for the medals. In a modestly-sized peloton, depth could mean a lot, but Belgium's work throughout the day kept the race fully under control.
France effectively did not use their depth in early attacks and, by that order, saw their riders finish outside of the top positions. The tactic was quite more ambitious than what the results show however: "The instruction was to always have a rider on Evenepoel’s wheel, but I understand that after a climb of over two kilometers at a 10% gradient, you might not be thinking clearly for a moment," Thomas Voeckler said in words to L'Équipe.
Whilst the Italian rider used their depth to finish second and third on the day with Giulio Ciccone and Christian Scaroni, France did not play a similar role. Romain Grégoire was perhaps the strongest weapon but the Groupama rider struggled on the steep ascents and was dropped on the penultimate lap.
With Remco Evenepoel then attacking on two occasions, there was no space for anyone else to anticipate. "Besides, there isn't enough room on the wheel for everyone".
Thomas Voeckler at the 2026 European Championships
Evenepoel and Ciccone a class apart
Remco Evenepoel and Giulio Cicccone rode to first and second on the day, and that did not appear to be put to question by anyone during the decisive phase of the rae.
"We wanted to maintain a numerical advantage with two laps to go, but we should have had someone with them when Remco attacked. That applies to many countries. Although I don't think we could have stayed with Evenepoel and Ciccone on the final climb, they were a class apart".
Mathys Rondel attempted to jump the medals with Scaroni from the chasing group on the final lap, but didn't have the legs to keep up with the Italian on the final climb. Léo Bisiaux finished ninth in the chasing group, France's best position.
Mathys Rondel was 11th, Romain Grégoire was 12th, Kévin Vauquelin was 14th, Alex Baudin and Pavel Sivakov finished consecutively in 17th and 18th place.
"If there had been a team classification, we would have won. But that’s pointless," Voeckler lamented.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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