With this new stage victory (the two previous ones date from 2018 in Saint-Brieuc and Saint-Gilles Croix-de-Vie), Anthony Marchand finally finds his smile. After 31st place in Kinsale and 14th in Roscoff, the skipper of the Figaro 3 Groupe Royer-Secours Populaire finished 24th overall.
With this first place after 410 miles in Morlaix Bay, Anthony Marchand should make a very big comeback in the overall ranking. Just like Gildas Mahé and Alexis Loison who arrived 6'12 minutes and 38'12 minutes respectively after the winner. Indeed, the other competitors should reach Roscoff in the afternoon. Starting with Martin Le Pape (23 miles) and Michel Desjoyeaux (27.6 miles), who should finish at 4pm. The group to which the leader belongs in the general classification before the start of this stage, Yoann Richomme (HelloWork-Telegram Group), should arrive around 17-18h.
"Drinking champagne 50 miles ahead of time is not bad!" said the stage winner on his arrival
Anthony Marchand (Groupe Royer-Secours Populaire) © COURCOUX Alexis
On the first night, Sunday, when he attacked Saint-Brieuc Bay, he chose a northern option that allowed him to roll up Videcoq's buoy, in front of Granville, in fourth position, ten minutes behind the first, Alexis Loison. In Alderney, where " to the nearest minute." said Gildas Mahé, he managed to escape the current and accompany the skippers of Région Normandie and Breizh Cola Equi'Thé to Hand Deeps, where almost the entire fleet was closed the door.
Finally, during the night of Tuesday to Wednesday he passed Alexis Loison during the bypass of Ushant, not without taking some risks, in the company of Gildas Mahé.
"The goal was to take the inside, I managed to do the inside on Alexis with Gildas, we really were in the rocks, there were places that weren't mapped, we didn't know if we were going to hit or not, I think we played a little" explains Anthony Marchand.
Les Figaros at the passage of La Julent © COURCOUX Alexis
A game that will have been favourable to him since he came out in front of this last strategic passage to cross the finish line as a winner
" Third stage victory is cool, it shows that I was there. I was a little disappointed with my first two stages, especially since it was not deserved, I didn't think I had made any big balls and I had taken a lot of money, it's a little nose thumb to win this stage, it will do me good in my morale, I needed that one!"
The solo trio has left the top fifteen in the overall standings after the second stage and should therefore be back in the game overall
Podium of the 3rd stage Baie de Morlaix - Baie de Morlaix © COURCOUX Alexis
"After the first stage, I told myself that I would only play the stage victories over the rest of the Solitaire, in the end, there will be more contenders for the title than we thought. This Figaro will be crazy until the end, we'll still pull our hair out, but good, it must be exciting to follow ashore and for us too, it is, it's perfect" summarized well when he arrived in Roscoff Alexis Loison.
