France had several cards to play at today's World Championships, and they certainly gave it their best shot playing with their depth. Although they've achieved a silver medal, there was a feeling of discontent with the lack of the win after such an aggressive race.
After the race finished, Voeckler told Eurosport/GCN that "sometimes we make plans, it goes as planned. Other times it starts to go as planned and then it doesn't. You have to recognize one thing: the fittest wins." He was clear however that little could be done against Remco Evenepoel: "You can shoot the race in any sense, Evenepoel was unbeatable."
France was in the moves early on with Romain Bardet attacking the ascent to Mount Keira, and Pavel Sivakov eventually getting himself in the large 16-rider breakaway. The team had three riders in the large group that went off into victory, whilst behind Valentin Madouas also worked to try and limit the gap, as France did not have it's main cards at the front.
Eventually, the peloton managed to bring back all riders but eventual winner Remco Evenepoel, and the team could do a strong leadout for Christophe Laporte who sprinted to second place. After two seasons with the rainbow jersey however, the French now return to a position of trying to recover what was once theirs in the coming year.
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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santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
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Voeckler: "Parfois, on fait des plans, ça se passe comme prévu. D'autres fois, ça commence à se passer comme prévu et ensuite non. Il faut reconnaître une chose: le plus fort a gagné. On peut tourner la course dans tous les sens, Evenepoel était injouable." #Wollongong2022
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