Chantonnay, France // Rank outsider Steven Tronet took a sensational victory at the French road race championships on Sunday as sprint favourite Nacer Bouhanni crashed at the finish.
Tronet has never raced for a World Tour team nor taken part in the Tour de France but he stunned more illustrious opposition to snatch a dramatic victory after 247.4km around the Vendee region.
“For the last month I’ve been telling myself it’s possible, I did everything to win, I really believed in it,” said the 28-year-old Tronet, a professional on second tier Continental Tour teams since 2007.
“This is my reward, I’ve been struggling for nine years.”
In-form Bouhanni was widely expected to win the race and was ideally placed in the run-in to claim the French title three years after his first national success.
But a wave caused by Anthony Roux, who was later stripped of his second-placed finish as punishment, took Bouhanni down.
The Cofidis rider was quickly back on his feet and his Tour de France participation, where he is expected to challenge Mark Cavendish in the sprints, is not thought to be in doubt.
Tony Gallopin was promoted to second with Sylvain Chavanel third ahead of a trio of riders who will be expected to challenge for stage wins at next month’s Tour, Warren Barguil, Julian Alaphilippe and the charismatic Thomas Voeckler.
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