'You can't give up' - Paret-Peintre's Ventoux victory the pride of France

It’s been a long while coming, but France finally has its Tour stage win, Valentin Paret-Peintre winning on one of the race’s most legendary climbs, Mont Ventoux.

As perhaps the major showcase for the beauty of France, the race is tightly bound to the country’s culture, so the pressure for a French rider to win is huge.

In 2024, it happened on day one, Romain Bardet taking the yellow jersey after an emotional win, even if it was in Italy. The country soon had a second too, Anthony Turgis (TotalEnergies) winning on the gravel tracks of Champagne. But July 7th 2024 was a long time ago, and with only five stages remaining of this year’s race, the whole country will feel at once relieved and proud after Paret-Peintre’s success. 

Arguably, any victory is a beautiful thing, but after such a pulsating stage at a place synonymous with every emotion the Tour de France can evoke, Paret-Peintre’s was especially so.

“It's extraordinary, but that wasn't the plan!” the Soudal-Quickstep rider said. “I really thought Pogacar was going to want to win and that he was going to lock down the race. I didn't really believe it, I told myself that if there was a big group, why not be in it, but I wasn't really focused at the start, thinking that today was for the breakaway.

Paret-Peintre will surely be even more emotional after what was another crazy stage.

After a brief flurry of attacks, it seemed the day’s break was set, three men escaping up the road, but in reality, it took 70km for the race to settle, a group of more than 30 forming the day’s break. Paret-Peintre was not alone in the break, team mates Pascal Eenkhoorn and Ilan van Wilder were also present. 

“When we found ourselves in front with [Pavel] Sivakov and another guy from UAE, I told myself that they had put two guys in front and that they were going to want to play with the breakaway, so we were going to take the lead and try to win. 

“I felt really good. I had two teammates, and I told them that in this group I really had a chance to win.”

Patience was key when a small group got up the road with a lead of more than 1.40, but Paret-Peintre was ready, following Ben Healy (EF Education-EasyPost) into the final few kilometres, catching lone leader Enric Mas (Movistar) before a game of cat and mouse. 

Healy would make a move, the Frenchman would counter, Mas would be dropped, then get back on, while all the time the GC battle was getting closer, Jonas Vingegaard playing Visma | Lease a Bike’s tactical hand with Tadej Pogačar (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) stuck to his wheel.

Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain Victorious) arrived, throwing a spanner in the works, but Van Wilder’s appearance soothed the situation for Paret-Peintre, even though he was weighed with the expectations of an entire nation as he struggled over the line as a Tour de France winner.

“I can't believe it! A Tour victory is extraordinary, but on Mont Ventoux, it's something else again. That's what I was telling myself in the final. Ben Healy was really strong in his attacks, but I told myself it was a victory on Mont Ventoux. You can't give up, even in the last 100 meters to overtake him. I really struggled, but I told myself, ‘You have to do it, you can't give up.’”