Roy Jans has won the second stage in the Etoile de Bessèges. In the stage between Nîmes and Les Fumades (157,1km), the 24-year old Belgian proved to be the fastest in the sprint of the, through a crash, reduced peloton.

“This was my first sprint of the season and it’s resulted in a victory straight away. This holds a lot of promise and hopefully it’s the first of many in 2015. The team has done great work and I am very happy with this victory,” Jans reacts.

The second stage in the south of France became a cold day to remember. The cold head wind made that the peloton showed little interest in attacking. The average speed was well under 30 kilometres per hour. The stage was stopped on several occasions.

“There was a cold and stormlike headwind which resulted in dangerous racing conditions. After a short break on the first finish line passage, and after that two times more, the peloton decided to race again,” sports director Steven De Neef explains.

After the break, Tim Kerkhof (Team Roompot) attacked solo and managed to get a lead of five minutes. In the end the lonely rider succumbed to the wind and the peloton prepared for a bunch sprint.

“The sprint was a lottery,” lead-out man Marco Marcato explains. “I asked Roy which side of the road he wanted to take. He answered that he didn’t know and then I told him to trust me. I took him to the front and then they crashed. I looked behind me and still saw Roy glued to my wheel. At that moment I knew we rode for the victory.”

“We were very well positioned in the final 1,5 to 2 kilometres,” Jans continues. “Then a Cofidis rider went down in third position and I heard many more riders crash. We were able to avoid this. I yelled at Marco to start the sprint after the last corner and he did that perfectly. I only needed to follow his wheel and could save energy. After the turn I only needed to jump from his wheel.

"There was a lot of wind. It was really dangerous for us, especially in the early part. That is why the peloton rode really slowly. There were crashes all the time. Now I'm happy to have finished the race.  In the second half of the course, it was still dangerous, but less. 

"The last kilometers were very tactical. Two kilometers from the finish, there was a big crash. I went with a small group with my teammate Marco Marcato. I am the sprinter of the team here and Marco is my lead-out man. I told him he had to start sprinting in the last corner. He did his job to perfection. I launched my sprint at 250 meters and I am proud to have won for my team and for me. Especially today, with this cold. "