PREVIEW | Paris-Nice 2024 stage 2 - Kooij, Pedersen, Groenewegen, De Kleijn and Thijssen headline massive sprint battle

After conquering the opening day, Olav Kooij will once again be a candidate to win stage 2 of Paris-Nice. With no wind in sight, we preview what should be a calm day.

On the outside of Paris, the second stage of the French race should see a bunch sprint. It's an almost pan-flat day from Thoiry to Montargis, with 178 kilometers in distance and very little to note.

The arrival into town is the most notable moment of the day, which the sprinters will be waiting for all afternoon long. The final kilometers are not technical but do have some key points.

With 1.2 kilometers there is a very tricky section that resembles a double chicane. Very tricky, there will be a big slowdown and stretch in the peloton. We'll have a big race to this point, and then a slight right-hander which leads the riders into the final 600 meters to go. From there on straight and fast into the finish line.

The Weather

A small southern breeze. Against the normal weather of the race actually, it should lead the peloton into having a more calm day in the peloton - and having a slight headwind finish.

The Favourites

Olav Kooij - The man did what I expected of him today. Kooij can climb short ascents well, and out of those who can climb he has the strongest pure sprint. This had him as my favourite for the opening day. Here no-one will be dropped before the finish so he's got to handle the fight for positioning, but it is not as hard as in the UAE Tour. There, he did quite well, so I expect him to also have good chances of winning in this finish.

In direct competition this time around we will have the pure sprinters. The likes of Arvid de Kleijn, Fabio Jakobsen, Dylan Groenewegen and Gerben Thijssen will all be present this time around... All of these men have real speed and a kick towards the finish, and on this day no climbs to put them into trouble. Out of these I would seriously consider Arvid de Kleijn who has been nothing but superb so far this year, the most consistent of the riders above - although all of them have strong leadouts.

The lack of climbing can also certainly benefit men like Arnaud Démare and Sam Bennett; both racing for French teams and with something to prove, they will be motivated to hit the front - however taking a win is a completely different situation.

Arnaud De Lie, Kaden Groves, Danny van Poppel, Pascal Ackermann and Madis Mihkels are some of the other sprinters who I also expect to see towards the front in this finale. As the first pure bunch sprint finish of the race, we may see a few faces that can pop out of a good position and surprise into a top result.

Prediction Paris-Nice 2024 stage 2:

*** Olav Kooij, Arvid de Kleijn
** Gerben Thijssen, Mads Pedersen, Fabio Jakobsen
* Dylan Groenewegen, Kaden Groves, Arnaud Démare, Sam Bennett, Madis Mihkels, Bryan Coquard, Danny van Poppel

Pick: Arvid de Kleijn