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19 Apr 2026
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19 Apr 2026
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Jamie Meehan - put in a big performance in Classic in France
Mountcharles cyclist Jamie Meehan further enhanced his status in the world of cycling with a magnificent climb to finish 5th in the Classic Grand Besancon Doubs on Friday.
Arguably the greatest ride of his short career to date, the Cofidis team member, matched some of the best cyclists in the demanding climbs.
Meehan had a good end to his season last year while on his stagiare with the French team but since signing a full-time contract, his effort on Friday was his best to date.
Among the group he was with on Friday included Jordan Jegat (Total Energies), who was 10th overall in last year's Tour de France well as the Decathlon CMA CGM Team duo of Léo Bisiaux and Matthew Riccitello, the winner of the recent Tour de la Provence (2.1).
The Classic Grand Besancon Doubs had 2,700m of climbing over a distance of 176km from Besancon to Montfaucon with the final climb of some 4km averaging nine per cent gradient.
That gradient was enough to completely split the field, with the strongest riders simply rising to the top as the road kicked up. Once the lead four had pulled clear on the second half of the climb, Bisiaux and Riccitello took turns at attacking.
Jegat was able to respond, with Meehan grinding out a more even climbing pace, and perhaps not as comfortable with the stop-start nature of the final. However, he remained with the four-man group until Jegat threw in the final dig that settled the contest.
Classic Grand Besançon Doubs (1.1) - Besançon - Montfaucon
Rnk Rider Team Time
1 JEGAT Jordan TotalEnergies 4:18:00.000
2 RICCITELLO Matthew Decathlon CMA CGM Team 0:06.000
3 BISIAUX Léo Decathlon CMA CGM Team 0:09.000
4 MUNTON Byron Modern Adventure Pro Cycling 0:13.000
5 MEEHAN Jamie Cofidis 0:22.000
6 IRIBAR Unai Equipo Kern Pharma 0:31.000
7 BRAZ AFONSO Clément Groupama - FDJ United 0:33.000
8 BERTHET Clément Groupama - FDJ United 0:38.000
9 CHAMPION Thomas St Michel - Preference Home - Auber93 0:44.000
10 MARIAULT Axel CIC Pro Cycling Academy 0:45.000
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