After making the front group yesterday at Tour de l'Ain (2.1) on debut for World Tour team Cofidis, 21-year-old Irish rider Jamie Meehan today finished on the podium after an incredible performance.
Meehan, the Irish U23 road race champion, showed he could climb in big company on the 153km stage from Saint-Vulbas to Lélex Monts-Jura, with 3,350m of elevation gain.
And as the finish neared he demonstrated supreme confidence in attacking the chasing group - behind Cian Uijtdebroeks (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Nicolas Prodhomme (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team) - to claim 3rd place.
The leading duo broke clear after Visma Lease a Bike ramped up the pace on the last categorised climb, the cat 1 Col de Menthières - 9.1 km at 7 per cent gradient - with the main field exploding under the pressure. Meehan remained in the front section as it was trimmed back to a select group.
Advertisement
Uijtdebroeks is not long back racing after more than three months away from the peloton due to a back injury, but he confirmed his building form with an attack on the climb. Prodhomme went after him and the duo worked together, staying away to the finish.
Meehan and team mate Sylvain Moniquet stepped up to take on much of the work on the front of the chasing group after they came off the climb. However, despite pushing hard on the front, the Irishman still had the legs to go solo close to the finish and take 3rd place.
Related News
Prodhomme enciende la ??????́? ?
Nicolas Prodhomme supera, para ponesr líder de la general, a un Cian Uijtdebroeks que sigue sin lograr su primera victoria profesional
? Lo has podido ver en #E1 y @StreamMaxES. #TourDeLAin pic.twitter.com/dJvTAFIPZt
— Eurosport.es (@Eurosport_ES) August 7, 2025
That is a dream result for Meehan, who improved incrementally year-on-year to secure a place with UCI Continental team, AVC Aix Provence Dole, this season and then a stagiaire with Cofidis, which has begun at Tour de l'Ain (2.1).
Meehan showed just last week he was in great form as he approached the start of his trial with the World Tour team when he took a solo victory at Trophée Souvenir Roger Walkowiak, which is part of the French Cup.
And now having started his Cofidis trial, and jumped into top tier European pro racing, he has claimed a podium finish. He drove the chase group along for much of today's final before attacking it inside the last kilometre.
He immediately opened a gap of a few seconds and, though Ben Tulett (Visma | Lease a Bike) put in a very strong sprint to catch Meehan on the line, the Irishman hung on to take 3rd.
Up front, Prodhomme easily beat Uijtdebroeks in the two-up sprint for the stage win, putting two seconds into the Belgian in that final gallop.
Meehan was 3rd at 53 seconds, followed by Tulett, Louis Rouland (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), Sylvain Moniquet (Cofidis), Geoffrey Bouchard (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team) and Gianluca Brambilla (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team), all on the same time.
Prodhomme now leads overall, with one final stage to come tomorrow, by two seconds from Uijtdebroeks. There is then a group of six riders all equal on time, at 53 seconds, including Meehan. The Irishman would be 3rd overall if he had managed to gain even one second today, though Tulett was very strong in pursuing him into the final sprint.
The race concludes tomorrow with the 130km stage 3 from Plateau d'Hauteville to Belley. It features 3,155m of elevation gain, including the Col de Richemond, Col de la Biche and, the big one, the Col du Grand Colombier, crested 40km from the finish.
