Ewen Costiou finishes second in the first stage

Race reportAug 19, 2025

World Team TeamTour du Limousin-Périgord - Nouvelle Aquitaine

Ewen Costiou 2nd at La Courtine, Simon Guglielmi ahead and taking bonus points, a good start to the Tour du Limousin for the red and black team in their “Excalibur” jerseys.

Ewen Costiou

This was my first race back after the Tour de France, and I think I overcompensated. I feel strong, and I think it will get better and better as the races go on. I would like to commend the entire ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team for their good work on this first stage of the Tour du Limousin. We were aggressive, we rode at the front and controlled the race. Anthony Delaplace and Mathis Le Berre put me in the best position in the peloton. Simon Gugliellmi was in the first breakaway, which meant we didn't have to ride behind. He took the bonus points. Once his group was caught, seven of us broke away. We took the lead, then our breakaway broke up. Thomas Gachignard went on the offensive. I followed him. We worked well together right away, but as I suspected, two kilometers from the finish, he didn't pass me. That's the game, because he had a teammate behind him. I kept going in anticipation of the overall classification in the Tour du Limousin, while still thinking about winning the stage. But Thomas was the fastest, no question about it. I was able to gain a little time for myself in this race, which is often decided by small margins, and that's not bad.

Laurent Pichon

Sport director

We don't know, the Tour du Limousin is often decided by very little. And Ewen's second place, with a slight lead over the peloton, may be a good thing. But beyond his performance, what I want to remember from this first stage of the Tour du Limousin is the spirit of the ARKEA-B&B HOTELS team. Simon made the first breakaway, earned bonus points, and is eighth in the provisional overall standings tonight. It's always good to have several riders well placed in this race. Ewen, for his part, seized the opportunities that presented themselves, twice. The first time was by joining a group of seven, and the second was by following Thomas Gachignard in the final. We tried to play the stage, of course, but in the final, when his breakaway companion was less cooperative, because one of his teammates had gone on the counterattack, Ewen continued to ride to try to create as much of a gap as possible between himself and the peloton. It was a good day, but we know that anything can happen in Limousin. We remain cautious. But congratulations to the red and black team for this great start to the race

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