Place Name: Avenue Georges Clémenceau
Address: Avenue Georges Clémenceau, 07500 Guilherand-Granges, France
Details: October 5, 2025
Many riders skipped the World's in Rwanda citing fatigue and the long journey but with a week of rest, the start list for the European Road Race is jam packed. A few of the climbs from the Faun-Ardèche Classic were used to create a 202KM course that will test the endurance of everyone lining up at the start in Privas. The first 50KM are relatively straightforward as the course heads North then East towards Beauchastel on the banks of the mighty Rhône River. The race follows the Rhône Northward to Valence for the circuits that define the race. There are three large laps of 35KM around Guilherand-Granges with the 7KM 7.2% Saint Romain de Lerps followed by the steep Val d'Enfer, a 1.6KM hill at nearly 10%. After the three larger laps come three laps of 17KM which also contains the Val d'Enfer. The final time up Val d'Enfer comes with 6KM to go but with so much coming before, the race may already have been decided.
Three riders got away early on a shallow climb after KM0 including two Dutch riders, Daan Hoole and Mathijs Paasschens as well as Mathias Vacek of the Czech Republic. Other Nations attempted to break the elastic but the gap was out to 50 seconds and growing and Slovenia were marking every rider who tried to escape. Solvenia's presence didn't dissuade attacking though because the bunch was still active until 160KM to go when a counter attack got clear of around 15 riders with nearly all of the big countries represented. Slovenia started riding almost immediately and when the original three leaders hit the finish line with 155KM to go, the gap was 1 minute 15 seconds to the peloton with the chase group in between at 26 seconds.
The front two groups came together on the first passage of the Saint Romain de Lerps and by the top, they were 2 minutes 30 seconds ahead of the peloton. The crowds were enormous on the Val d'Enfer. By the top, Slovenia had the break on a tight leash at just 2 minutes 15 seconds. The race settled into a more controlled pattern until halfway up the second ascent of the Saint Romain de Lerps when Belgium significantly increased the pace. Slovenia decided to keep it going and the first major casualty was Jonas Vingegaard of Denmark who went out the back with 109KM to go. 5KM later at the top, Remco Evenepoel of Belgium accelerated and pulled an elite group of seven away from the rest. By the bottom, the remaining riders from the peloton stitched up the gap to the Evenepoel group but the peloton was reduced to around 50 riders.
The Italians and Swiss pushed the pace on the second time up the Val d'Enfer with Gianmarco Garofoli and Jan Christen. Evenepoel took over and rode very hard which dispatched everyone with the exception of Tadej Pogačar of Slovenia and Paul Seixas of France. Dropped riders from the break were coming back and over the top, the remnants of the break had less than 30 seconds. Evenepoel dragged the favorites up to the break with 90KM to go at the start of the proper descent back into Guilherand-Granges. A group of riders were able to regain contact on the descent to make around 30 riders at the front. With extra reinforcements, Belgium took up the pace making while France sat back and waited, still strong with five riders.
Belgium had three riders in front of Evenepoel for the start of the third and final time up Saint Romain de Lerps. It felt like the race would be in holding pattern for a while but Pogačar attacked on a steep section near the bottom with 76KM to go. Only Evenepoel could follow but after a few hundred meters, Evenepoel shook his head, swung off, and Pogačar was alone at the front of the race. Seixas came up to Evenepoel and with 73KM to go, Juan Ayuso of Spain and Christian Scaroni of Italy joined as well to make four chasers. Pogačar eeked out second by second and by the top, the gap was 35 seconds.
The chasers worked well and had Pogačar within 25 seconds by the top of the Val d'Enfer with 56KM to go. Scaroni was skipping turns each chance he could which laid the burden primarily on Evenepoel to do the work. Pogačar went through the finish line at 51KM to go to start the three short laps with an expanded lead of 40 seconds. Unfortunately for the chase group, the power was with Pogačar who built over 1 minute by the fifth time up the Val d'Enfer at 41KM to go. Evenepoel was clearly the strongest among the chase group and he showed frustration with the work rate and cohesion of Ayuso, Scaroni, and Seixas. Evenepoel was fed up and attacked right at the top with 38KM to go and was immediately clear.
Evenepoel was able to hold Pogačar at 1 minute but could not get any closer. Pogačar crossed the line to complete his 76KM solo raid to take the European Road Race in the only way he knows how. Evenepoel proved once again that he is elite but will have to be satisfied with another Silver medal. In the battle for Bronze, Seixas, Ayuso, and Scaroni were together for one last time up the Val d'Enfer. Seixas set the hardest pace he could manage which was slightly more than Ayuso could handle and the Spaniard slipped away. Scaroni got up to the young Frenchman's wheel but was fighting with every fiber to do so. Seixas had 10M on Scaroni at the top and put in a great descent to distance Scaroni once and for all to give third place on the day.
Tags: European Continental Championships, 2025, October, Privas, Guilherand-Granges, Daan Hoole, Mathijs Paasschens, Mathias Vacek, Gianmarco Garofoli, Jan Christen, Remco Evenepoel, Tadej Pogačar, Paul Seixas, Juan Ayuso, Christian Scaroni