Anthony Roux continued his winning form by beating Romain Feillu in a bunch sprint in the first stage of the Circuit de Lorraine in France. Laurent Mangel was third to make it an all-French podium. Portuguese rider Rui Da Costa was the first non-French rider in fourth place. The stage ran from Amneville to Longwy over 161 kilometers.
Roux had previously won the overall classification of the Circuit de la Sarthe - Pays de la Loire, after taking stage four of the race, 181km from Angers to Pré-en-Pail. Feillu is a more recent bike race winner, having taken the Tour de Picardie three days ago.
The difficult ending in Longwy gave the edge to Roux, as the runner-up admitted. "The last three kilometers hit the four-percent gradient, which made it very tough. Ultimately I was coming up too late to beat a very strong Roux," Feillu said after the finish.
Including the overall classification of the Tour de Picardie, Feillu has won six races so far this season, which gives his Vacansoleil the confidence to always help Feillu. "The team worked perfectly in the chase of the early break and in the difficult final," the team's sprinter said.
A four-rider break dominated the day for around 100 kilometers. Marco Marcato and Rob Ruijgh (both Feillu's teammates) tried late escapes. Ruijgh was caught five hundred meters from the line, but forced other teams to chase. That allowed Feillu to stay put and save energy, but he had no answer to Roux's acceleration.
The race continues tomorrow with a stage from Briey to Commercy over 168 kilometers. The Circuit de Lorraine ends on Sunday with a dash from Metz to Hayange, over 150km.
Results stage one
1. Anthony Roux (Française des Jeux)
2. Romain Feillu (Vacansoleil)
3. Laurent Mangel (Saur-Sojasun)