"It's nice to finish on a good note" - Lenny Martinez concluded his grand tour debut with a strong breakaway showing
Cycling
Author of a magnificent first week, including wearing the red jersey for two days, Lenny Martinez subsequently disappeared, diminished by an illness which prevented him from racing at his best level.
"The feelings have returned and it's nice to finish on a good note, giving everything in the breakaway and emptying the tank all the way to the line. I tried and gave everything to get the victory, but we will come back," explained the French climber on the Groupama-FDJ website.
"Lenny fought well in front, he had good legs. He didn't miss much to switch with the five, but it really came down to his leg. The only big regret today is Romain who misses the breakaway by just a fraction. With Lenny and him in front, it would have been more playable and the course suited him," concluded the sports director Benoît Vaugrenard.
The 20-year-old Martinez will now try to catch his breath and gather as much strength as possible before his final stance in 2023 at Italian autumn classics, topped off by his Monument debut at Il Lombardia.
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- I see (elsewhere) that Alaphilippe had more to say than what got relayed in this stub. Me: he was very good early but his latter third trajectory was the pits. His old boss did what he could (huffed and puffed) but Julian couldn't get his greatness back. Sometimes I wonder if crashes that didn't look like much changed the course of the rider.flyer14-11-2026
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