French U23 champion Alexy Faure-Prost will step up to the World Tour from 2024 with Intermarché-Circus-Wanty. The talented 19 year old climber is the third rider of Circus-ReUz-Technord to be promoted to the Walloon World Team.
After Francesco Busatto and Roel van Sintmaartensdijk, Alexy Faure-Prost will be the third talent of the Continental Development team directed by Kévin Van Melsen to join the professional peloton in 2024 with Intermarché-Circus-Wanty. The French U23 champion signed a contract until the end of 2026 with the Belgian World Team.
From his season start he won the GP Raygeo in Villers-le-Temple before taking another solo win on his preferred terrain in the Ardennes in the Get Up Cup, ahead of his teammate Busatto.
Then, in support of Francesco Busatto, he had a major influence on hilly races such as Liège-Bastogne-Liège U23, Circuit des Ardennes or La Flèche Ardennaise. In May he discovered the high mountains in the Mercan’Tour Classic (22nd), his first race pro race.
During the summer, he confirmed that he was among the best climbers of his generation, with his impressive second place on top of the Passo dello Stelvio and best young rider’s jersey in the Giro Next Gen (5th), his second place overall in the Giro della Valle d’Aosta and twentieth place in the Tour de l’Ain with Intermarché-Circus-Wanty.
In August, the talented climber became French champion on the hilly parcours of Pledran, one of his three victories with Circus-ReUz-Technord and this in his first season in the U23 category in 2023.
“I had a fantastic first season in the U23 category. I even received the opportunity to race with Intermarché-Circus-Wanty, which has given me the confidence that it might be possible to sign a pro contract starting from 2024. I know that joining the World Tour is a serious step up. I discussed a lot with Kévin Van Melsen to decide which choice would be better for my development. The idea for 2024 is to join the World Team to discover the pro calendar and to pursue my learning process, and at the meantime also continue racing with Circus-ReUz-Technord.” “This plan has several advantages. First, I know that the level in the World Tour is very high, so racing with the pros regularly will boost my physical development. It will also be important in terms of learning. Racing with radio communication enables my teammates and sports directors to guide me to manage my effort during the races. I remember that it was very helpful in the Tour de l’Ain, when I protected the sprint train of Arne Marit for the first time. Anyway, I’ll be surrounded by great climbers such as Louis Meintjes, who is a role model in terms of professionalism and who can inspire me.” “I’m hoping to, one day, reach the highest level with Intermarché-Circus-Wanty. However, for now I don’t want to project too far in the future. I want to progress step by step. I’m still young and full of enthusiasm. The structure of Intermarché-Circus-Wanty is the ideal environment to develop myself. The trajectory designed by the team is perfect in my eyes, so I have great confidence that it will bear fruit in the next seasons, also with the help of my trainer Christophe Prémont. I know already most of the team but I can’t wait to meet everyone this week and also to greet our fans during our Bike Day this Sunday in Durbuy!”
“We attracted Alexy because we were convinced about his great potential for long efforts. We pushed him towards the high mountains and he has proven himself with distinction. I’m very proud of his evolution. He still has a great margin for progression and a lot to learn. That’s why it was important to establish a well thought-out strategy for his development. By combining a programme with Intermarché-Circus-ReUz-Technord in 2024 we aim to accelerate the learning process.” “I’ll be his mentor in both teams. We build a mutual relationship of confidence. He’s a person who needs to feel supported in good moments and in difficult periods, which are inevitable during a cycling career. Within the World Team he will be surrounded by seasoned riders and gain a lot of experience. With the Devo team we will determine several goals for which he will prepare in a leader’s role aiming for the victory. I’m convinced that he can become one of the climbing talents of our World Team in the future.”
“Together with Kévin Van Melsen and the performance team we established a balanced development strategy for Alexy. He’s a talented rider with a big engine who has the potential to become a very good climber. His great talent is coupled to a winner’s mentality. Considering his impetuous development we keep our feet on the ground and so does Alexy, he’s still very jong. In 2024 he will pursue his evolution in a serene way in an environment with focus on development, aiming to progress step by step. He will combine the race calendars of our both teams. In addition to the support of our performance team he will often train and race in company of riders like Louis Meintjes, Simone Petilli or Rein Taaramäe, who will share their experience. The development of riders such as Alexy, Francesco Busatto or Roel van Sintmaartensdijk offers our project a new dimension. We’re very proud of the efforts of the performance team to form the future champions of our World Team.”
