Hello and welcome! It's the last - and decisive - day of the 2022 Paris - Nice stage race! The overall winner will be decided by the traditional mountain time trial leading from Nice to the Col d'Èze, a mountain pass between Nice and Monaco.
The climb is almost 10 kilometers long, and with an average gradient of "only" 4.7% is one that the stronger rouleurs among the climbers will certainly like. Hence we can suppose that pure climbing skills won't be sufficient today, but some decent time trial capabilities will be needed as well.
Let's take a look at the GC situation and the rider skills of the current Top20, as well as some others who have those skills as well but didn't have a great race so far:
Rank
Time Difference
Rider
Mo
TT
Res
143
+ 25'25
Foss
78
76
79
44
+ 8'39
Kennaugh
77
74
70
43
+ 8'33
Warchol
80
67
77
34
+ 6'29
Inkelaar
80
64
76
23
+ 4'57
Almeida
78
71
77
22
+ 4'53
Rikunov
77
74
71
20
+ 4'46
Lehtinen
75
65
69
19
+ 4'41
Prevar
71
62
70
18
+ 4'40
Carthy
81
67
76
17
+ 4'36
Carboni
78
69
73
16
+ 4'18
Chiarello
79
73
74
15
+ 4'18
Roglic
79
71
74
14
+ 3'49
Kirsch
79
71
73
13
+ 2'35
Bernal
81
78
80
12
+ 2'08
Pinot
80
65
79
11
+ 1'43
Barguil
81
70
77
10
+ 1'34
Madrazo
83
75
77
9
+ 1'27
Pluchkin
81
75
72
8
+ 1'20
Padun
82
66
74
7
+ 1'13
Olivier
81
69
80
6
+ 1'10
Dombrowski
84
71
78
5
+ 1'08
Sosa
78
67
79
4
+ 41
Morton
84
73
78
3
+ 33
Meintjes
80
71
76
2
+ 29
Lecuisinier
85
78
80
1
26h57'30
Formolo
79
69
76
We can see that most strong climbers indeed are inside the Top20 - and even inside the Top15. From the early starters, we'll mainly watch out for Foss, who could be in the lead for quite some time. Kennaugh might be a candidate for a good stage result as well, while the pure climbers like Warchol or Inkelaar might struggle more - but we still included them because they definitely are strong uphill.
There's also the duel Almeida vs. Rikunov for 3rd place in the U25 standings - and this one looks to be pretty wide open. Pretty wide open are also the spots from 27 to 15, as they're all within one minute!
Especially between Kirsch and Bernal and then from Bernal to Barguil - with Pinot sandwiched in between - there are major gaps, which will probably mean that there won't be a whole lot of movement. However, Bernal is one of the top time triallists here and will definitely want to gain a few spots - watch out for him!
Madrazo and Pluchkin might also gain a few spots, being clearly stronger against the clock than Padun, Olivier and Sosa - whiel Dombrowski will need to use his mountain advantage to make up for the TT deficit.
As mentioned before, Sosa could drop quite some spots, given that he's the weakest climber up there in the GC - and one of the weakest TTers as well. Morton will try to climb faster than Meintjes - and Lecuisinier, clearly today's biggest favorite for the stage win, will try to take away the GC from Formolo. The Italian is in a similar situation as Sosa, but of course has a nice cushion on most riders.
So, we're granted to get a tension-loaded race, and before we tune in, let's take a look at who the bookmakers favor for this final stage! For them it's clear that climbing matters - nothing else, they're not even considering the TT skill. Hence, the top climbers Lecuisinier, Morton and Dombrowski get the first 3 spots on their list, in that order. Madrazo, Bernal and Olivier are next, while Padun only getting one star is the exception to the aforementioned rule that only climbing matters. Barguil, Carthy and Warchol get one star as well.
We're ready for the showdown - let's hope the riders are, too!
While sprinters Lo Cicero and Moser open the race, the first one to set a notable time is Pira, stopping the clock at 13'58" at the intermediate time check at Col des Quatre-Chemins, and 23'48" at the finish line.
Norsgaard confirms the theory that climbing counts way more than TTing - being a gifted time triallist, we stands no chance, losing almost one minute at the time check and 1'34" at the end - 25'22".
Much more has to be expected from early starter Foss, who's by far the strongest climber on the road by now - and he betters Pira's time by 41" half way up: 13'17". He increases the gap to 58" on top of the Col d'Èze, setting a new best time of 22'50". While it's clearly the strongest time, one might wonder if he shouldn't have beaten the Colombian by a bigger margin...
And indeed, the Norwegian's lead didn't last very long, as Rybalkin improves his intermediate time by 17" and the finishing time by 27" - clearly not someone we expected to beat Foss! But the new best times stand at 13'00" (Col des Quatre-Chemins) and 22'23" (Col d'Èze).
De Bod then proves that even TTers without a lot of climbing skills can ride decent times, losing 39" at the time check and 1'02" on top - 3rd time so far.
Sergis - chasing after green jersey Coquard - is the exact opposite - a decent uphill rider without any TT skill whatsoever. And he's way faster than the South African before, losing just 21" half way up and 33" in the end - which is a time of 23'56" and just 6" slower than Foss... Clearly, the latter had yet another off day.
Pereyra is another pure climber, and he has a solid ride posting the 4th time both at the time check and at the finish line - 22'54" (+ 31").
Youngster Johannessen already has both Pons and even Gaviria in sight as he reaches the checkpoint at Col des Quatre-Chemins - and it's a great ride, posting the 3rd time, only one second slower than Foss! It's even slightly better at the finish line, as he matches his fellow countryman's time - but still slots in behind by a few fractions. 22'50" for him, a great intermediate result!
Even stronger however is Misbah, who clocks the 2nd time both at the time check and the finish line - one second faster in the end, which is a time of 22'49".
Things are slowly starting to heat up, as the density of stronger climber increases the further up we go in the startlist. Andriafenomananiaina (yeah, I spelled that correctly without looking it up) takes 2nd at the time check - 13'09" (+ 9").
Burmann gets even closer to his leading teammate, as he's 3" faster than the Madagascan - 13'06" (+ 6")!
And it looks like we always get improvements by 3", as Sosnitskiy continues that trend, while almost catching Ringheim at the split time already - 13'03" (+ 3")! The next one should actually match the leading time then, right?
But before we get another good time at the split point, those three contenders reach the finish line on top of the Col d'Èze. Andriafenomananiaina obviously makes the start, and he again posts the 2nd time, 16" down - 22'39".
Burmann was 3" faster on the first section, and another 3" on the second one - meaning he has a total deficit of 10" to his still leading teammate Rybalkin. 22'33" for the Chilean.
And last but not least, Sosnitskiy, who lost 3" to the leader on both sections, for a total gap of 6" - 22'29". It's getting closer!
But the trend at the time check doesn't continue, as Osorio loses 14" - 13'14". Which is the exact same time as his teammate Sendeku posts a little later.
Rachid on the other hand is a couple of seconds faster, tying Andriafenomananiaina for 3rd - 13'09" (+ 9").
Osorio also loses a some seconds on the final kilometers of the race, taking 5th place currently - 22'45" (+ 22").
We then have a new 3rd best time at the split, as Sequera crosses the line at Col des Quatre-Chemins - 13'05" (+ 5").
Sendeku was tied with teammate Osorio at the intermediate time check - but he was 2" faster on the second half, taking an exclusive 5th place now in 22'43" (+ 20").
Rachid was able to keep up the good pace, losing only 14" in the end - 22'37", which is enough for 4th place currently.
Tinkoff - La Datcha Team seem to be well-prepared for this final stage, as Mamykin also posts a good intermediate time - shared 3rd place in 13'05".
Sequera, whose intermediate time was just matched, slightly faded on the final meters, dropping to 4th behind Burmann, although posting the same time - 22'33".
After the Venezuelan, we only expect 51 more riders at the finish line, and even less than 50 at the time check - so let's look at the provisional Top 10 at the split time and at the finish line:
Col des Quatre-Chemins
1.
Rybalkin
13'00"
6.
Rachid
+ 9"
2.
Sosnitskiy
+ 3"
7.
Andriafenomananiaina
+ 9"
3.
Mamykin
+ 5"
8.
Chamorro
+ 13"
4.
Sequera
+ 5"
9.
Osorio
+ 14"
5.
Burmann
+ 6"
10.
Carpenter
+ 14"
Col d'Èze
1.
Rybalkin
22'23"
6.
Andriafenomananiaina
+ 16"
2.
Sosnitskiy
+ 6"
7.
Sendeku
+ 20"
3.
Burmann
+ 10"
8.
Carpenter
+ 21"
4.
Sequera
+ 10"
9.
Osorio
+ 22"
5.
Rachid
+ 14"
10.
Misbah
+ 26"
The next rider to post an interesting split time was actually on our list above, due to his good combination of TTing and climbing - and Kennaugh doesn't disappoint! On the contrary - he's the first rider to beat Rybalkin's time, even by a whopping 6"! 12'54" is the new reference at Col des Quatre-Chemins!
Warchol then proves that climbing alone isn't enough - although he's really strong uphill, he struggles against the clock, and in combination that's a 16" deficit - 13'10", provisional 9th place.
On the other hand, he might just be having yet another bad day, as Smith proves the "TT-matters" theory wrong yet again, as he ties Kennaugh for the lead - 12'54"! So all we can say for now is that climbing matters - and daily form probably matters more than TTing...
Let's not forget however that another fast rider was still underways - and Mamykin confirms the 3rd place he had at the split - 22'32" (+ 9"). That's currently 3 Tinkoff - La Datcha Team riders in the Top4!
This however soon becomes history, as Kennaugh powers through and betters Rybalkin's time by 10" on top of the Col d'Èze - 22'13" is the new best time!
As expected, Warchol is unable to match the Brit's pace, losing another 13" - 22'42" (+ 29").
It gets much closer again as Smith approaches the finish line - but on the pretty flat final 2 kilometers, time trial skills seem to matter a bit more, and he lost 3" on the 2nd part of the race! It's still a solid 2nd place in 22'16"
We then see Inkelaar at the time check. The Dutchman definitely has to redeem himself after a disastrous 6th stage - and the fact that he has almost caught Cabrera by now indicates that he's probably doing well. But that would be an understatement, as he lowers the reference mark by 10" here, posting the clear new best time - 12'44"!
Inkelaar wasn't even his team's best positioned rider in the GC before this stage - but that will probably change, as Stancu does well, but not well enough - 4th place in 12'55" (+ 11").
Things are really moving in the Top5 now, as Schir matches Stancu's time for provisional 4th place at the time check.
And all good things come in threes, so Vervaeke posts the same time as well, snatching away that 4th place from the Swiss - 12'55".
But now we have Inkelaar sprinting over the finish line - and the young Dutchman has doubled his lead over Kennaugh, lowering the reference mark by 18"! New best time: 21'55", the first rider to dive below the 22 minutes mark!
Yet another Gazelle rider - and Karnulin makes teammate Vervaeke drop to 5th at the time check, as the Ukrainian posts the 2nd time - 12'49" (+ 5").
Stancu was 4th at the split point - and is 4th at the finish line as well, matching Smith's time of 22'16" (+ 21").
Before we get to the GC Top20, let's follow the fight for 3rd in the U25 standings. Although Inkelaar had a great ride, it's not very likely that he'll gain more than 90" on his direct competitors - at least he doesn't gain as much on Almeida, who posts the 8th time in 12'56" (+ 12").
Schir matched Stancu's time half way up - but he lost 2", meaning he drops to 5th place in 22'18" (+ 23").
Rikunov had a 4" advantage on Almeida before the stage - and he currently holds onto his 3rd place in the U25 standings, even extending his lead to 7"! His split time: 12'53" (3rd, + 9").
We then have Vervaeke arriving on top - again matching Schir's time, but slotting in behind - 6th place in 22'18" (+ 23").
The first rider of the Top20 will soon reach the intermediate time check, so let's take a look at the current standings before things will heat up even more!
Col des Quatre-Chemins
1.
Inkelaar
12'44"
6.
Vervaeke
+ 11"
2.
Karnulin
+ 5"
7.
Schir
+ 11"
3.
Rikunov
+ 9"
8.
Stancu
+ 11"
4.
Smith
+ 10"
9.
Almeida
+ 12"
5.
Kennaugh
+ 10"
10.
Rybalkin
+ 16"
Col d'Èze
1.
Inkelaar
21'55"
6.
Vervaeke
+ 23"
2.
Kennaugh
+ 18"
7.
Rybalkin
+ 28"
3.
Smith
+ 21"
8.
Spilak
+ 29"
4.
Stancu
+ 21"
9.
Martinez
+ 32"
5.
Schir
+ 23"
10.
Sosnitskiy
+ 34"
Sorry for having missed out on Spilak and Martinez; the cameras probably missed them because they didn't post a Top5 time, neither at the checkpoint nor on the finish line.
Karnulin, who still holds the 2nd place on Col des Quatre-Chemins, now also takes the same spot at the finish! 2nd place in 22'10" (+ 15") - meaning he lost 10" on the second half, though!
Lehtinen is one of the more surprising names inside the GC Top20 - but it looks like he'll tumble down the GC, losing already more than 50" at the time check!
Carthy isn't a good time trialist, either - but he is a strong climber, and he proves this today, almost catching Prevar at halftime! It's a great split time for the Brit - 2nd place in 12'45" (+ 1")! Prevar has already lost more than a minute and will probably take a deep dive in the GC as well.
Carboni is one of the stronger domestiques in the GC so far - but his DS will be relieved that the team doesn't rely on the Italian to get a top result, as he has a bad day as well and loses 46" already.
Almeida is throwing in everything he has left, trying to seize that final U25 podium spot - right now, he takes the lead in this classification, as he posts the 8th time losing just 24" to Inkelaar, who will likely finish 5th. 22'19" is the Portuguese's finishing time.
Next at the checkpoint is Chiarello; the Brazilian TT champion is a good climber and a decent TTer, but that's only enough for shared 4th place currently - 12'53" (+ 9").
Rikunov then tries to seal his U25 podium spots - and he does so in a convincing way! The Russian takes provisional 4th place of the stage, losing 18" in 22'13". He also takes the virtual GC lead ahead of Almeida!
Roglic was tied for 15th with Chiarello before the stage - and it looks to be a very close race between those two! The Slovenian currently is 2" faster - 4th place in 12'51" (+ 7").
The next rider has an advantage of almost half a minute in the GC, and with Kirsch losing only 11" at the checkpoint (9th place), the Luxembourger looks to be safe - 12'55".
Our cameras didn't catch Guerreiro at the checkpoint, but given some intermediate times lately, the Portuguese - currently 21st in the GC - has some decent chances of moving into the Top20! He posts a time of 22'27" (+ 32"), which is worth 2nd place in the virtual GC behind Rikunov!
Bernal is one of the favorites for today's stage, given his great climbing AND time trialling skills - but the Colombian has yet another mediocre day. He only posts the 9th time at the checkpoint - 12'55" (+ 11")! That doesn't look like a successful Top10 conquest yet...
With Lehtinen, the first Top20 rider finishes today's final stage - and as expected, he'll drop down quite a few spots. His time of 23'21" (+ 1'26") makes him drop to 7th in the virtual GC.
Pinot is 12th in the GC and needs to gain more than 30" to make the jump to the Top10 - and while he had a decent first half, his time will probably not be enough. 4th place, matching Roglic's time of 12'51" (+ 7").
The next to finish is Carthy, who only trailed Inkelaar by one single second at the split - but he lost six additional seconds on the upper part of the climb. It's still a clear 2nd place for him in 22'02" (+ 7"). He obviously takes over the virtual GC lead from Rikunov as well!
As expected, he has overtaken Prevar, who reaches the finish line some seconds later, but loses 1'49" on the day - which makes him drop down even behind Lehtinen in the virtual GC!
Barguil is also looking to move up to the Top10 - he needs to gain 9" on Madrazo for that. We'll see soon how the Spaniard fares, but the Frenchman at least does a good job so far, losing just 1" and tying Carthy for 2nd - 12'45".
And here comes Madrazo! However, he clearly doesn't look like giving away his Top10 spot for free, as he matches the current best time at the split - 12'44"!
Carboni on the other hand is giving away not just one spot, but quite some of them - losing 1'20" today probably means dropping outside the Top20 - meaning that after Guerreiro before, Almeida also has secured a Top20 GC spot now!
Chiarello clearly isn't at risk of losing his Top20 spot - not even a single spot, actually, as he finishes in 22'13" (+ 18"). This is good enough for current 4th place and the virtual GC lead!
Pluchkin is another rider who might be at risk of dropping out of the GC Top10 - but he's having none of it, as he lowers the best time by 4" - 12'40"!
We then have the decision in the fight for 15th place - and that spot goes to Roglic, as he holds onto that 2" advantage over Chiarello that he already had at the time check. 22'11" (+ 16"), provisional 4th place and GC lead for him!
Padun's preferred discipline definitely isn't time trialling - but we clearly wouldn't have expected him to be 22" slower than his teammate! 22nd place for him in 13'02" - meaning it's actually the Ukranian who could lose his Top10 spot!
Kirsch was pretty much in no-man's land GC wise, and his finishing time of 22'17" (+ 22") is easily enough to defend his 14th place - but probably not sufficient to move further up, either. Anyway, he's the new provisional GC leader!
Olivier isn't a great time triallist - but a good climber, and all in all he does a good job on the first half of the race. Losing 4", he slots into 4th place at the timecheck in 12'44".
But "good job" immediately is put into different relations, as Dombrowski smashes everything we've had so far - the US American is clearly chasing the podium here, being 12" faster than everyone else at this point! New best split time: 12'28"!
Given his fantastic skillset and physical strength, Bernal might have been dreaming of a GC podium, and probably took the white jersey for granted - but in the end, he will probably even miss out on a GC Top10! He only posts the 11th time at the finish line - slotting in right behind Kirsch in 22'17" (+ 22")! What a disappointing race by the Colombian!
Disappointing? Not for me, are probably Pinot's thoughts, as he stops the clock at 22'11" (+ 16"). 5th place, right behind Roglic - and the virtual GC lead, being worth at least a 12th place GC finish!
Very disappointing, that might be the conclusion of Sosa's performance today! 57" back already, he'll take a huge tumble today! Will he even lose the white jersey? He had a 1'27" margin, of which 30" are gone - he should be fine, but we'll see...
On the other hand, Morton is having a fantastic ride so far, besting Dombrowski's time by another 5", setting the reference time to 12'23"!
Barguil probably knows that his direct competitors for the lower Top10 spots are doing better, so he's trying to squeeze out every ounce of energy left - but instead of gaining back some time, he lost 7" on the 2nd part, posting a final time of 22'03" (+ 8"). Enough to take the virtual GC lead, but maybe not enough for a GC Top10!
At least the Frenchman clearly won't be able to beat Madrazo, with the Spaniard setting the new fastest time on the Col d'Èze! 21'54" is the new reference - one second faster than Inkelaar!
Only the current GC podium is missing at the checkpoint - Meintjes being the first of them. While a 20" deficit sounds like a lot, he still takes 4th place there - 12'43" (+ 20"). Meaning that he has virtually dropped behind Morton, but still has a good margin on Dombrowski!
Pluchkin is the next rider to finish his race - and he does that in style, lowering the best time by another 6"! The new time to beat is 21'48"!
We then have the big pre-race favorite at the time check. In the first 7 stages, he was solid, but not great - and today? Well, solid, but not great. He's 6" behind Morton, posting a time of 12'29". Which is good enough for 3rd place - but remember that he only had a 12" advantage over the Australian pre-stage!
And GC leader Formolo? He punched above his weight especially on the big mountain stage - but today it's rather the contrary! He loses a whopping 44" already, the yellow jersey is virtually gone!
When speaking of it, let's take a look at the final Top10 at the checkpoint - and at the virtual GC at this point:
Col des Quatre-Chemins
1.
Morton
12'23"
6.
Madrazo
+ 21"
2.
Dombrowski
+ 5"
7.
Inkelaar
+ 21"
3.
Lecuisinier
+ 6"
8.
Olivier
+ 21"
4.
Pluchkin
+ 17"
9.
Barguil
+ 22"
5.
Meintjes
+ 20"
10.
Carthy
+ 22"
Virtual GC Standings at Col des Quatre-Chemins
1.
Lecuisinier
27h10'28"
6.
Olivier
+ 59"
2.
Morton
+ 6"
7.
Pluchkin
+ 1'09"
3.
Formolo
+ 9"
8.
Madrazo
+ 1'20"
4.
Meintjes
+ 18"
9.
Padun
+ 1'24"
5.
Dombrowski
+ 40"
10.
Barguil
+ 1'29"
Formolo still is on the virtual podium, but he'll need to clearly up his pace, given that tiny 9" advantage on Meintjes! On the other hand, we're looking to have a great duel for the win, with Morton going really strong today!
On the other end, Sosa has already dropped out, being clearly the weakest of the former GC Top10 today.
Padun arrives at the finish line - and as due to his intermediate time, he doesn't get a great result. He loses 42" to his teammate, and his finishing time of 22'30" means he indeed loses out to all of Pluchkin, Madrazo and Barguil - all of them therefore have secured a GC Top10!
Olivier won't be satisfied with "just" a Top10, his goal probably being to make up a couple of seconds and even moving up to the Top5! With 22'00", he currently takes 4th place and the provisional GC lead.
However, to sneak into the Top5, he'd need to beat Dombrowski - which doesn't happen today. On the contrary, after having posted an excellent split time, the American now crushes Pluchkin's hopes for a stage win, by taking over the hot seat - 21'30" is the new time to beat! Is that enough for attacking the GC podium?
Maybe it is, but it definitely isn't enough to beat Morton today! The Australian extended his lead by 2" on the second half of the course, posting the new best time of 21'23"! As seen in the checkpoint's virtual GC, that should be enough for a podium - but can he even take the GC win?
Winning the GC clearly won't happen this year for Sosa - at least not in this race. He loses more than 90" - ending up 7th in the provisional GC. With 4 riders yet to come, and all of them having clocked a faster split time, he'll very likely tumble down to 11th in the final GC.
Meintjes on the other hand is still fighting for a possible GC podium - and while the fight against Morton has long been lost, he's trying to defend his 37" over Dombrowski! The South African finishes in 21'58" - which is 35" behind the stage leader, and 29" behind Dombrowski! Meintjes takes 2nd place in the provisional GC, just 9" ahead of the Gazelle rider!
We then expect Lecuisinier at the finish line on the Col d'Èze! He only has a 12" advantage over Morton, of which half was gone by the checkpoint - and now? The clock is ticking for him... 21'23" ... 21'24" ... 21'25" ... 21'26" ... 21'27" ... 21'28" ... 21'29"! Lecuisinier keeps his deficit at 6", meaning that he takes over the virtual GC lead by 6" ahead of Morton!
So only the yellow jersey is missing, and it looks like Formolo has picked up the pace on the second section! He had a 33" advantage over Meintjes, who currently sits in 3rd place of the virtual GC - the Italian has to finish below 22'31" if he wants to defend at least the GC podium!
22'25" ... 22'26" ... 22'27" ... 22'28" ... 22'29" ... 22'30" ... 22'31" ... 22'32" ... 22'33" ... 22'34" ... 22'35" - the clock stops 4" too late for Formolo, who slips down to 4th! How close was that, and what a disappointment that must be!
Not only for Formolo, though, as Dombrowski is just 9" off the podium as well - and that's only enough for 5th place...
But where there are losers, we also have some winners! And today's stage winner is Lachlan Morton, congratulations! He rode up the Col d'Èze in 21'23", which was 6" faster than runner-up Pierre-Henri Lecuisinier, and another second faster than Joseph Dombrowski. The three top climbers delivered today - great job!
However, only two of them will also be satisfied with their GC result. The big pre-race favorite Pierre-Henri Lecuisinier turns the GC race around on the very last stage, without having been as dominant as it was expected, though. Two stage podiums, but no stage win - especially the home crowd expected more from him, but they'll be happy that he still won the 2022 edition of Paris - Nice! Congratulations!
But it was an incredibly close race in the end, as Lachlan Morton gave the local hero a great fight, and only lost out on the GC win by 6 seconds! And in 3rd place, we have quite a big surprise in Louis Meintjes, but the South African used the hilly stage to his advantage and limited the damage in the higher mountains - well done!
The race for the green jersey was basically decided before the stage already, as Bryan Coquard's advantage over those who could potentially score today was just too big. In the end, Caleb Ewan finishes 2nd, thanks to Pierre-Henri Lecuisinier "only" taking 2nd place on the stage, and hence taking the final podium spot in the points standings.
Without any KoM points available today, Julien Bernard just had to finish the race to win the jersey. Jhonatan Narvaez ends up 2nd, while Dominik Neuman takes 3rd.
Ivan Sosa may have lost a GC Top10 on the final day, but at least he wins the white jersey! Which is pretty surprising, but the big favorite Egan Bernal just didn't find his (climbing) legs all race long. Petr Rikunov takes the final podium spot in a close race for 3rd.
And last but not least, the wildcard outfit Team Popo4Ever p/b Morshynska takes the win in the team standings! They lost a bit of their advantage over cycleYorkshire, but still easily won the race. Gazelle end up 3rd.
That's it! Everything is said and done - at least for the 2022 edition! See you again next year for another "Race to the Sun"!
Sorry, the report was too long again, so the results need a separate post. The spoilers will be removed in a couple of days, and the thread will be reformatted then.
Paris - Nice 
