The 2023 cycling year has come to an end, and at IDLProCycling.com, we're taking an in-depth look at the most recent cycling season. Next up in the series: Cofidis! Perhaps not a team immediately etched in memory, but that's somewhat unjustified. The French team had an excellent season.
One-day races 2023: Cofidis
Cofidis has never been a major player in the real classics, so it's impossible to fault them for not securing a podium in a Monument or another prominent one-day race in the spring. However, the team performed well in the five Monuments. After Simone Consonni (Milan-Sanremo, 47th) and Piet Allegaert (Tour of Flanders, 45th), Max Walscheid and Guillaume Martin brought smiles in Paris-Roubaix (eighth) and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (sixth). Ion Izagirre was the highest-ranked at 40th place in Il Lombardia.
In the slightly smaller one-day races, particularly in France, Cofidis fared much better. Anthony Perez won the Faun Drôme Classic, Axel Zingle triumphed with a strong punch in the Classic Loire Atlantique, Victor Lafay took the title in the Classic Grand Besançon Doubs, and Jesús Herrada was the best in the Tour du Doubs. In the autumn, it was mainly Bryan Coquard who gathered some notable places in the one-day events.
(Grand) tours 2023: Cofidis
Cofidis clearly didn’t aim high for the Giro d'Italia, lacking a top-class GC rider or climber, and sent Consonni for the sprints. The Italian managed a top-five finish once, but that was the highlight for the team. This was perhaps anticipated, as Cofidis took their best possible team to the Tour de France.
Lafay broke through in the opening weekend in the Basque Country, climbing with the best for two days. On the second day, he went all-in with a late attack and was rewarded with a stage win in the Tour! Wout van Aert hit his handlebars in frustration, finishing second. On day twelve, it was celebration time again when Ion Izagirre proved the strongest in a challenging mountain stage from a breakaway, frustrating Mathieu van der Poel on the last climb and riding solo to victory. Martin also finished top ten in the overall classification after 21 days.
In the Vuelta a España, Cofidis continued their winning streak. This time it was Herrada who struck on day eleven from the breakaway. Sprinter Coquard, who had several notable places in the Tour, unfortunately crashed out early in the Vuelta. Looking at Cofidis' performance in stage races, Martin and Izagirre delivered. Martin finished sixth in the Dauphiné and seventh in the Arctic Race of Norway. Izagirre, as usual, excelled in 'his' Tour of the Basque Country, finishing third.
Final grade 2023: Cofidis
A solid, well-earned grade for Cofidis. Dominating in the grand tours with this roster deserves a 7 on its own. Add a few bonus points more for beating Wout van Aert in the Tour de France, and the editors of IDLProCycling.com give them a final grade of 7.4.
Transfers 2023/2024: Cofidis
Incoming: Alexis Gougeard (2023VC Rouen 76), Nicolas Debeaumarché (St Michel - Mavic - Auber93), Nolann Mahoudo (CIC U Nantes Atlantique), Ludovic Robeet (Bingoal WB), Stefano Oldani (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Gorka Izagirre (Movistar), Aimé De Gendt (Intermarché - Circus - Wanty), Milan Fretin (Team Flanders - Baloise), Stanislaw Aniolkowski (Human Powered Health), Kenny Elissonde (Lidl - Trek) and Ben Hermans (Israel - Premier Tech)
Outgoing:Rémy Rochas (Groupama-FDJ), Max Walscheid (Jayco-AlUla), Simone Consonni (Lidl-Trek), Alexandre Delettre (St Michel - Mavic - Auber93), Pierre-Luc Périchon (retired), Wesley Kreder (retired)
Ones to watch 2024: Cofidis
In Cofidis' transfer list, we don't find any big names, but there are still some interesting riders on the list. For instance, master attacker Alexis Gougeard returns to the WorldTour after a year at the club level, and strong climbers like Kenny Elissonde and Ben Hermans join to bolster the squad. Stefano Oldani and Ludovic Robeet are two powerful forces for one-day races and sprints, and Gorka Izagirre will be reunited with his brother Ion.
Selection Cofidis 2024
- Pete Allegeart
- Stanislaw Aniolkowski
- Thomas Champion
- Bryan Coquard
- Aimé De Gendt
- Nicolas Debeaumarché
- Kenny Elissonde
- Rubén Fernández
- Eddy Finé
- Milan Fretin
- Simon Geschke
- Alexis Gougeard
- Ben Hermans
- Jesús Herrada
- Gorka Izagirre
- Ion Izagirre
- Oliver Knight
- Jonathan Lastra
- Nolann Mahoudo
- Axel Mariault
- Guillaume Martin
- Christophe Noppe
- Stefano Oldani
- Anthony Perez
- Alexis Renard
- Ludovic Robeet
- Benjamin Thomas
- Hugo Toumire
- Harrison Wood
- Axel Zingle
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