A revelation of the first part of the season, Louis Barré is preparing to make his debuts at the Critérium du Dauphiné and the Tour de France with Intermarché-Wanty. Since joining the team of Jean-François Bourlart, the 25 year old French puncheur has reached a new level, highlighted by a sixth-place finish at the Amstel Gold Race.
Prior to his remarkable performance at the Amstel, Louis Barré demonstrated impressive consistency in every event he participated in. On the attack from his very first races in Mallorca, he finished in the top 10 in several classics, leading to his first podium with Intermarché-Wanty in Paris-Camembert. The rider from Nantes managed to maintain this form through the Ardennes Classics and then the Tour de Romandie, where he finished fourth in a stage. After a short break, he joined his teammates in Andorra for a 20-day altitude training camp, with an eye on making his debut in La Grande Boucle. On his way to the Grand Départ in Lille on July 5th, Louis Barré will take part in the Critérium du Dauphiné, the Giro dell’Appennino, and the French National Championships in Les Herbiers.
CRITERIUM DU DAUPHINÉ
Louis Barré will be joined at the Dauphiné by fellow Frenchman Hugo Page, who already wore the green and white jersey and reached a podium finish in the previous edition. Louis Meintjes, who just improved his best career result in the Giro d’Italia, will ride his sixth consecutive Dauphiné. The selection of sports directors Sébastien Demarbaix and Pieter Vanspeybrouck is completed by Kamiel Bonneu, Dries De Pooter, Tom Paquot and Dion Smith, with the first two discovering the event.
The eight-day UCI WorldTour race kicks off on Sunday 8th of June in Domérat. The first three stages offer opportunities for strong sprinters in hilly terrain, with finishes in Montluçon, Issoire, and Charantonnay, before a 17.4-kilometer individual time trial on Wednesday 11th of June. Another sprint chance awaits the peloton the following day before a challenging long weekend in the Alps. Friday sees an uphill finish in Combloux, while Saturday features three hors catégorie climbs—the Col de la Madeleine, the Col de la Croix de Fer—culminating in a summit finish at Valmeinier 1800. The final day promises an all-day climb towards Plateau du Mont-Cenis.
“I’m thrilled to announce that I’ll be making my debut at both the Tour de France and the Critérium du Dauphiné. We've just wrapped up an excellent high-altitude camp in Andorra with the team, where we trained hard and had perfect conditions. My focus now is on recovering fully for the Dauphiné. This was my first time preparing races at altitude, and I'm really eager to see how my body responds. The Dauphiné will be proving ground, because after the hilly stages I'm also ready to push my limits in the Alps, from the breakaway or with the favourites. This process is interesting for my development. And even if the immediate results aren't there, I have exciting objectives later this month with the Giro dell'Appennino and the French National Championships, which suit me well. As for the Tour, the the first half holds great promise for puncheurs, with at least three opportunities. I'm particularly looking forward to stage eight, to Laval – it's practically home turf, just outside Nantes, and I can't wait to feel the support of my family there! Above all, I'm motivated to help the team reach success. My debut in the Tour de France with my Belgian team is the pinnacle; I expect it to be like racing a Monument, but every single day for three weeks.”
