Tony Gallopin wins fourth stage of the Étoile de Bessèges, Hugo Houle 14th

Lotto-Soudal’s Tony Gallopin won the finishing sprint up the Mur de Laudun to claim victory on Saturday’s fourth stage of the Étoile de Bessèges. Cofidis’ Christophe Laporte followed him across the line to take second. Edward Theuns of Topsport Vlaanderen- Baloise was third. Canada’s Hugo Houle had a good showing, finishing 14th for his Ag2r-La Mondiale squad.

Gallopin’s win came after a tough day of racing in the hills of southern France. The peloton set out under clear skies with a cold wind blowing that would give shape to much of the race. A group of eight got away after the early skirmishes, with Thomas Voeckler of Team Europcar, Arnaud Gérard of Bretagne-Séché Environnement, Kévin Van Melsen of Wanty-Groupe Gobert, Steven Tronet of Auber 93, Rudy Barbier of Roubaix-Lille Métropole, Xandro Meurisse of An Post-ChainReaction, Thomas Vaubourzeix of Veranclassic-Ekoï and Gaëtan Pons of Wallonie-Bruxelles included in the move. They quickly worked up a three minute advantage, while the Topsport Vlaanderen- Baloise team of race-leader Edward Theuns managed the peloton behind. By the time the break reached the first of four 15.4-km finishing circuits, the group’s lead had dwindled to less than two minutes, while the chase behind was heating up. Just inside the 40-km-to-go mark, Lotto-Soudal went on the attack, blowing the peloton to pieces during a crosswind section. Their efforts put many riders in serious difficulty but weren’t enough to form a decisive split. Soon, the peloton was back together while, in front, the break began to come apart. Voeckler emerged in front solo, driving hard for glory, once the games had been played out. The French star held on until the last few kilometres but the peloton’s strength proved too much. Trek Factory Racing and Lotto-Soudal did battle in front to set up the sprint, with Lotto’s Gallopin proving best in the end. Edward Theuns held onto the leader’s jersey on the strength of his third-place finish.

Everything is up for grabs in Sunday’s final time trial. Theuns sits seven seconds ahead of Lotto-Soudal’s Kris Boeckmans and 13 seconds up on Trek Factory Racing’s Marco Coledan in the general classification. 12 riders are placed within 20 seconds of the lead. Hugo Houle will be aiming for a big result in the chrono. The Canadian is on form, after finishing 14th up the Mur de Laudun. He put in a strong attack with Thomas Voeckler on Stage 2 of Béssèges and, just recently, finished on the podium in the time trial at the Tour de San Luis.