23 August 2021

Connor Swift: "I enjoy races with a time trial like the Poitou-Charentes”

The Tour du Poitou-Charentes en Nouvelle-Aquitaine starts tomorrow, and as is often the case in this race, the time trial on Thursday afternoon could be decisive for the overall classification.

 

Pre-race

 

“I discovered the Tour du Poitou-Charentes two years ago, it is an event that I appreciate because it has an individual time trial that can help to establish the final general classification. I am very motivated by this competition. Warren’s success on the roads of the Tour du Limousin is energising the whole team, this victory is good for the morale of the whole Arkéa-Samsic team. I hope we will get good results in the Tour du Poitou-Charentes. The stages that precede the time trial are also difficult, most of them can be considered as sprints like this on paper. But beware of things that are written in advance, some of them could very well be won by breakaways or by a small group of riders with a lead on the peloton. The stages seem open to me and we have the cards to play for any kind of race.

Last week for me, I raced in the British Marathon Mountain Bike Championships. It was my first time in this discipline. The race was 5 hours long with a positive climb of over 3500 metres. I was on fire for five hours, it was fun. I finished 3rd, and that was for my morale after the Tour, after my recovery, 3rd is not bad for a first time. I like mountain biking, and why not compete in other competitions in the future”.

“My objective on the three stages, plus the half-stage of the same type on the morning of the time trial on Thursday, will be not to lose time to the other riders who have ambitions for the general classification. I think that, like every year, the time trial will establish the almost definitive hierarchy in the general classification. Any loss of time on a break will be equivalent to lost places in the general classification. The time trial is an important key of this race, but it is not necessarily the most complicated for the rouleurs. What you need in this competition is to be concentrated from the start to the finish of the stages in order to avoid breaks, and to do this you need to be well placed in the peloton
Arnaud Gérard, Sport-Director

The Briefing

 

“The Tour du Poitou-Charentes en Nouvelle-Aquitaine is a very tiring race, the general classification is often made during the timed stage on Thursday afternoon. But before that, you have to master some of the pitfalls that can occur in this race: clear roads at times, winding finishes with the possibility of breaks, which must be avoided in order not to lose time. It is a competition that requires application all day, and therefore to remain concentrated. We can aim for a good general classification with riders who have time trial skills such as Thibault, Connor and Anthony”.

Riders