Thibaut Clément and David Moncoutié shared the spoils at the 44th Les 3 Cols Matériel-Vélo.com, France’s oldest timed cyclosportive, held on Ascension Thursday in the rolling Monts du Lyonnais west of Lyon. Despite threatening skies and shower warnings, 866 registered riders — more than 700 of them on the timed routes — lined up at the Parc de l’Hippodrome in La Tour de Salvagny.
On the 140 km route, Clément (Cycling Team Matériel-Vélo.com) delivered a dominant solo ride to finish in 03:50:11 at 36.49 km/h. Teammate Nicolas Dricot crossed the line 3 minutes 2 seconds later, with Robin Bourdier, also of Matériel-Vélo.com, a further 1 minute 19 seconds back. A clean podium sweep for the title sponsor’s squad. Clément, a 2024 European Granfondo Champion, is rapidly establishing himself as a dominant force in French cyclosportive racing.
The 140 km parcours was revised for 2026, replacing the Col des Brosses via Faverges with the Col de la Croix de Pars via la Maillardière — an 11 km climb averaging 3.3% with ramps reaching 14%.
On the 97 km route, four-time Vuelta a España King of the Mountains champion David Moncoutié, the former Cofidis climber and Tour de France stage winner, took the overall win in 02:43:30 at 35.6 km/h. The 51 year-old soloed across the finish just over a minute ahead of youngsters Alexandre Langlais, 28, and Antoine Bruno, 26, both riding for Matériel-Vélo.com
Victoria Stansfield, also Team Matériel-Vélo.com, was the top women’s finisher on the 140 km route, placing 20th overall in 04:23:28 — the only woman inside the top 20.
The event attracts former and current professionals alongside seasoned cyclosportive specialists from France and across Europe, and remains a cornerstone of the Trophée Passion calendar — a traditional season opener for riders targeting the summer Alpine season.
Photo Credit: Facebook/taccyclo69
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