PREVIEW | Etoile de Bessèges 2023 stage 1 - Mads Pedersen and Arnaud De Lie face off in explosive hilly sprint

The opening stage-race of the year in France will be the Etoile de Bessèges and every year it delivers quite a lot of spectacle in central France. Stage 1 will see the traditional finale in Bellegarde where not only sprinters such as Mads Pedersen and Arnaud de Lie will be in the battle, but also the classics specialists and GC riders.

The opening stage will see some loops around the town of Bellegarde. It is a classic, a day that should fit the sprinters but also some puncheurs and possibly other riders who may be in form. In the profile it almost looks as if the finale will be completely flat, but the riders will have a circuit featuring the Côte de la Tour which features 800 meters at 6% and those will be the decisive meters of the day.

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Profiles & Route Etoile de Bessèges 2023

Final startlist Etoile de Bessèges with Pedersen, De Lie, Cosnefroy, Teuns, Bissegger and Pinot

Stage 1: Bellegarde - Bellegarde, 162.1 kilometers

Prediction Time:

*** Pedersen, De Lie
** Cosnefroy, Cort Nielsen,
* Kwiatkowski, Teuns, B.Thomas, Piccolo, Stewart, Mozzato, Burgaudeau, Simon, Kamp

Pick: Mads Pedersen

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PREVIEW | Etoile de Bessèges 2023