Here we are for the start of the Duo Normand, the French two-men TTT which will be the farewell of Continental Tour racing in Europe. The 47km course will decide the winner pair, being the main favourites
Mikhail Ignatiev – Vasili Kiryienka Lucas Schädlich – Kai Reus
First up are Cyclevox. Not the strongest of the squads, their time shouldn't be the reference for the fastest teams. Indeed, 1h13'30'', meaning the winning time will be way into the 1h12'.
Next up are Koppert. A solid pair just lacking a bit to be among the podium favourites, but their time is really disappointing! They finish with the same time of Cyclevox, but losing to them because of the hundredths of second. Definitely not what we expected from them.
Next team are Pokerstars.com, their goal shouldn't be the win but rather beating the other contenders for the promotion, and their time is hardly promising. They're the third team in 1h13'30'', beting Cyclevox and Koppert by hundredths of second, it's gonna be difficult for them to beat either Aker Solutions or even Venchi with this time. Incredible to have three teams in the same second in a 47km course anyway!
Venchi are coming now, beating Pokerstars should be possible for them, and it'd be important to gain points on Aker Solutions as well. That's it, they do beat Pokerstars.com by 9'', so they get the provisional lead. Their time is far from brilliant though, and the remaining teams should be able to beat it.
The previous winners of this race, Hollister, are coming next. Possibly not strong enough to repeat such a feat in this field, could be possible for them to podium the race? Well, their 1h13'06'' gives them the lead, 15'' faster than Venchi. Still four teams in the race, though, so that podium place is far from secured.
Aker Solutions know very well which are the teams to beat – not Tinkoff nor VolksWagen, but Pokerstars and Venchi. Larsson's last pull is really hard, and their time is a very solid 1h12'55'' – they not just beat Pokerstars and Venchi with ease, but they could even podium the race!
Turn for Rapha Condor now. Stannard's looking strong with a great last pull, but Tennant not so much. Still, that's enough to take the 1st place off from Aker Solutions, with a time of 1h12'51'', they beat them just by 4'', securing a podium, although it'll most likely be a 3rd place in the end.
VolksWagen are coming now. As one the biggest favourites, they should beat Rapha, but Tinkoff are coming fast as well. Will they be able to get - and keep - the lead? Their time is 1h12'36''- that's 15'' faster than the Britons, it may be enough.
Last to come are Tinkoff, the biggest favourites for today. Will they be able to beat VolksWagen's time? Certainly the race is at stake here. Aaand no! The Russians are 11'' slower than the Germans, disappointing for the Russian and Belarussian champion, they came here for the win, although this 2nd place is a great improvement from last year's performance for the team.
Great win for VolksWagen – Siemens, they fulfill their win goal for this season, and make Kai Reus the first rider to win the Duo Normand twice. Meanwhile Tinkoff can't be unhappy with the 2nd place even if the goal was the win, Ignatiev's presence made the team improve a lot from last year, and a good result for Rapha Condor, certainly Stannard has been specially strong today.
In the battle for promotion, Aker Solutions increase their still scarca advantage on Pokerstars.com and Venchi, but it's still close, and the last races will be very interesting for all the teams involved.
