Victoire Berteau becomes surprising French Women Champion: "I was dreaming of it"

Victoire Berteau became rather surprising French Women Champion. On hard course in Cassel, Berteau could rely on her teammates who controlled the race and the 20-year old had most energy left for the final push, beating numbers advantage of FDJ - Suez.

"I was dreaming of it," she confided, very moved, after the finish. "We had a clear plan with the team and it was respected to the letter. I had never won, and here I am winning for the first time in my life at the French Championships. It's wonderful."

"Being champion of France Elite, it looks good," she says. "I'm sorry to say that I won't be doing the Tour. I'm going to do a big altitude camp with the French track cycling team in order to prepare for the World Championships with view of Paris 2024, which will be my big goal. Maybe next year," she concludes.