Transcontinental Race No. 9 - TCR9 - #TCRN09 - 2023

Anatole's statement from Instagram. I like it. Feel for the boy. Makes a good point about not being told earlier and pushing so hard and taking risks to maintain 3rd.

(1)Dear Organizers, dotwatchers, friends,
Today, I'd like to give my version of the facts concerning the race director's decision to withdraw me from the TCR general standings for non-compliance with the rules, in order to clarify the situation and share my feelings.

I'm accused of having not ridden in solo and benefited from a kind of undue moral support by riding "for a significant period of time" with another participant. Here's what actually happened.

After a somewhat chaotic start, I found myself alone and didn't run into anyone. In Switzerland, my phone was switched off and I had no idea where I was. I was waiting for the Alps to come to make my first acceleration, which I did on the Col du Saint-Gothard, still alone.

Then, at the entrance to the mandatory parcours, I met Sebastian who was greeting a friend (dotwacher), and I continued on my way as I was looking for a store. We caught up again when I got to the market, because he'd made a wrong turn, and this time it was he who kept going. At this point I took a break of 10 minutes (verifiable on the tracker and on the gpx trace) before getting back on my route, alone, towards the Saint Bernardo pass (18km with a huge headwind). I dropped off the first two riders before catching up with Sebastian, who had stopped to satisfy a natural urge. I should point out that he and I are extremely close in level.

It was at this point that we rode side by side (without ever drafting) and for less than an hour and a half, all included). We caught up with 2 other participants. It started raining immediately and temperatures plummeted, logically forcing the four of us to take cover at the only petrol pump in our path.

(2)After that, everyone set off again, keeping their gaps: Ben C. first, then Sebastian, then Markus and finally me. I rode alone. The three of us met again at the summit, and then everyone rode the descent at their own pace, alone. At the foot of the descent, I stopped to put on my gloves and reflective vest. They also took the opportunity to put on their vests. I climbed Splugla pass without being able to pull away from the other participants (should I have stopped and cut my effort?). Once again, everyone did the descent alone, at their own pace.

I slept alone, as we all slept in completely different places. Then, importantly, we never saw each other again until we arrived in Thessaloniki.

I must point out here that I was told absolutely nothing at CP1, unlike Sebastian who received a warning. I was not made aware of any procedures before the finish.

These are the facts.

Quite apart from the judgment that can be passed on what happened, I deeply regret the way in which the race directors acted.
I feel a deep sense of injustice at the decision to wait until the finish to downgrade me, after nine days of racing, when the incident, which was fortuitous, happened on the second day.
I took all the risks and pushed myself to the limit to get third place. Tim also gave his all and took big risks, racing hard for the podium - unnecessarily so, as far as the organization was concerned, I'd already been downgraded.

(3)I find it hard to believe that the race director didn't read the report about this race fact until the day I arrived, since he had already given Sebastian a warning about it at CP1.

In the meantime, I crashed four times. I seriously damaged my bike. I spent €1,000 for seven days of racing. I'm an amateur, registered with my own resources.

I also wanted to point out that the race director gave me the opportunity to remove myself from the general classification "as a favor". This hurt me all the more as I believe I was not in the wrong, having run an honest, upright and committed race.

Moreover, I regret that the rules invoked to justify this decision in no way respect the most elementary rules of "rights of defense". In the final analysis, it's the arbitrariness of the race director that is being expressed. The rules give no specific evaluation criteria or scale of penalties, as is the case in any sporting competition that respects participants. The very notion of "significant duration" is not defined at all. What's more, no appeal procedure with the possibility of reviewing the decision is envisaged, despite this being a basic principle in any international sporting competition rules.

In all sporting good faith, I did my utmost to ride the best possible race and get to Thessaloniki, but you can imagine how disappointed I was to be surprised by a downgrading of which I had no prior knowledge during the race, for alleged offenses dating back several days.

The sporting community, so often invoked by race management, will judge, and my hope is that it will understand that certain practices are brutal. And I hope that they will also consider that a race with several hundred cyclists who never cross paths, even involuntarily, even without profiting in the slightest, especially during the first few days of the race, is perhaps part of an ideal fantasy world.

I'd like to thank you all for your messages of encouragement and support.

I wish you all the best in the pursuit of your sporting goals and hope to see you soon.