Strade Bianche, Ardennes... Tour de France? Paul Seixas' spring calendar may hint at Grand Boucle debut

The spring calendar for French supertalent Paul Seixas has been revealed. Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale will have the young Frenchman start his season at the Volta ao Algarve, focus on the Ardennes Classics... And what we see may hint at a possible Tour de France debut.

The 19-year old will start his season on the 18th of February at the Volta ao Algarve, where he will be testing his form. He will race the Faun-Ardèche Classic on the 28th of February, on the same roads that he rode to a podium place at the recent European Championships alongside Tadej Pogacar and Remco Evenepoel. Then, he will make his Strade Bianche debut, an interesting addition to his schedule. That will be his only race in March, as he is likely to take on an altitude camp - or a long training block - ahead of his main goals of the spring.

"Paul's program has been designed to gradually lead him towards his first major goals of the season: Strade Bianche and Liège-Bastogne-Liège," team manager Sébastien Joly said in a press release. Seixas will race Itzulia Basque Country and then he will do both Flèche Wallonne and lastly Liège-Bastogne-Liège to end his spring. This timing suggests that a Giro d'Italia participation is very unlikely, reinforced by Radsport News' report that Felix Gall will. This leaves an open road to the Tour de France, or a more modest approach to the three-week races, with a possible debut at the Vuelta a España.

"The Tour of Algarve and the Ardèche Classic will be concrete opportunities to aim for victory, while the Tour of the Basque Country will offer him high-level competition before the Ardennes classics," Joly continued. "Paul is entering his second season in the WorldTour, and the idea is to offer him a balanced schedule while allowing him to progress against the world's best. The rest of his race program will be announced in early May."

The 19-year old youngster believes this is the right course for his second pro season: "We have built my start to the season around races where I can really express myself and go for victory. The Ardèche Classic, Strade Bianche and Liège-Bastogne-Liège are races that are close to my heart and whose profiles suit me".

"The idea is to build momentum in the first two races before focusing exclusively on World Tour events, which will be key moments for me to test myself at the highest level. My goals are clear: to raise my arms in victory and confirm my progress by giving my all on the bike."