Video - Jamie Meehan shattered after career best performance

Jamie Meehan was shattered at the end of Classic Grand Besançon Doubs, where he had just put in arguably the best performance of his career

Jamie Meehan (Cofidis) has put in arguably the best performance of his career at Classic Grand Besançon Doubs (1.1), where he emerged among the very strongest in the demanding uphill finish to take 5th place.

Though Meehan took some very strong results last year while on his stagiaire with the French team, and then after he signed a contract proper, today's performance was of a higher order.

When the pressure was really on during the final climb, and some very strong riders were attacking, four men pulled clear of the rest of the select group, and Meehan was one of them.

For company he had Jordan Jegat (TotalEnergies), who was 10th overall in last year's Tour de France, as well as the Decathlon CMA CGM Team duo of Léo Bisiaux and Matthew Riccitello, the winner of the recent Tour de la Provence (2.1).

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With 2,700m of climbing today, over 176km from Besançon to Montfaucon, the race was a wearing down process on the early climbs. Then came the big finish up the final ascent to the line; some 4km of climbing averaging nine per cent.

That gradient was enough to completely split the field, with the strongest riders simply rising to the top as the road kicked up. Once the lead four had pulled clear on the second half of the climb, Bisiaux and Riccitello took turns at attacking.

Jegat was able to respond, with Meehan grinding out a more even climbing pace, and perhaps not as comfortable with the stop-start nature of the final. However, he remained with the four-man group until Jegat threw in the final dig that settled the contest.

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Once he went, Bisiaux and Riccitello fell back, with Meehan just behind them on the road, fourth man. The Irish rider was then caught and passed by South African Byron Munton (Modern Adventure Pro Cycling).

Jegat won the day, by six seconds from Riccitello, with Bisiaux in 3rd at nine seconds. Munton was 4th, at 13 seconds, with Meehan 4th at 22 seconds.

The Irish rider's 5th place today followed 3rd on a stage, and 14th overall, at Tour de l'Ain (2.1) for Cofidis last August. However, the degree of difficulty to today's final meant Meehan's result today was of a higher quality.

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