Sam Bennett is usually not happy with his performances unless he wins but today the Irishman declared himself pleased with his 3rd place at Paris-Tours. His satisfaction with a place on the podium was perhaps not surprising considering how well he finished after spending most of the final 60km on the attack.
It was also a very solid end of the 2022 season for the Irish Bora-hansgrohe sprinter who stormed back into form with two stage wins at La Vuelta and confirmed that return to top condition today with the manner of his riding.
With a breakaway up the road for most of today, Bennett went on the attack, with Kim Heiduk (Ineos Grenadiers), in pursuit of the leaders with 60km remaining in the 213km race, which featured gravel sections. He got to the front of the race in his chasing group before slipping back from it on an incline with just 11km to go.
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And though he lost his place up front, the rest of the escapees were also caught before the finish. That gave way to a sprint from a reduced bunch, in which Bennett finished 3rd despite his exertions over the final 60km. He might have passed eventual winner Arnaud Demare (Groupama-FDJ) and Edward Theuns (Trek-Segafredo) and snatched victory but for running out of road after being slightly boxed in.
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“I saw the opportunity to ride the gravel sections without too much fighting and I was lucky to have a strong group with me," Bennett said of getting away in the chasing group with well over an hour of racing remaining.
"We rode a good steady pace without many accelerations. We had a good recon yesterday which was crucial for today. In the end I’m super happy to finish the season on a high and on the podium.“
Bennett's sports director today, Jean-Pierre Heynderickx, said the team was very happy with the Irishman's performance. “We didn't want to rely on a bunch sprint today, so we tried to get up front with Sam Bennett right from the first gravel sector," he said.
"He put in a really strong race in the chase group, while his teammates in the peloton paid close attention and were able to follow every attack. Of course, a win would have been possible and nice, but we are more than happy with a podium at the end of the season."
