Drake Deuel of the USA claimed a commanding victory in the inaugural L’Étape Piemonte by Tour de France granfondo today, finishing in 03:59:16 to deny the powerhouse Italian OM.CC team a clean sweep of all four overall titles on offer.
A former Harvard rower and elite road cyclist now based in Nice, Deuel has been building a growing following as a full-time content creator documenting his European racing life. Today’s result is his biggest win to date.
It completes a remarkable run of form. Deuel finished second at La Lazaridès on Saturday 2 May, then backed that up with another runner-up finish at Granfondo La Vençoise the following weekend — making it back-to-back Côte d’Azur podiums in consecutive weeks. Today, he went one better, taking the top step on his third outing in four weeks.
Italy’s Fabio Lanzone (OM.CC) finished second, 10 minutes 33 seconds back, with former Russian professional Aidar Zakarin (Agios Mnason) third, a further 3 minutes 3 seconds behind. Alessandro Barra (Team Garda Matergia) and Enrico Logica (OM.CC) rounded out the top five.
In the women’s granfondo, Annalisa Prato (OM.CC) took the title in 04:29:50, with Iride Bertone (Roero Speed Bike) second at 32 minutes 22 seconds. France’s Céline Lepecheur — winner of the women’s Granfondo La Vençoise on 9 May — placed third, 42 minutes 12 seconds off the pace.
OM.CC’s Federico Borella — winner of La Lazaridès — delivered again in the mediofondo, taking the men’s honours in 03:03:14. Alberto Merli (ASD Team Joule) was second at 9 minutes 26 seconds, with Gabriele Novaira (OM.CC) third.
Anna Ceoloni (OM.CC) dominated the women’s mediofondo in 03:29:39, with Rebecca Zauli (Roero Speed Bike) second at 14 minutes 42 seconds.
The course featured the Madonna del Colletto — a climb made famous by the 1999 Giro d’Italia — tackled twice in the granfondo from both sides, plus the debut ascent of the Colle delle Goderie, a 5 km climb averaging 11%, where the polka-dot jersey classification was decided.
More than 1,300 riders from 26 nations and 24 Italian provinces started from Entracque. Winners across the various classifications were awarded the four iconic Tour de France jerseys — yellow, green, polka-dot, and white. The next L’Étape Italy event will take place on Sunday 20 September 2026 in Mondovì.
Photo Credit: Marco Gallo
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