Connor Swift won the French classic Tro-Bro Leon on Sunday after it took a photo finish camera to split the Arkea-Samsic rider from Piet Allegaert (Cofidis). Baptiste Planckaert (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert) was third.
You can rewatch full race of 2021 Tro-Bro Leon HERE
A leading group of nine riders formed early in the race, with Luuc Bugter (BEAT), Tom Paquot (Bingoal Pauwels Sauces WB), Alexys Brunel (Groupama-FDJ), Maxime Cam (B&B Hotels), Eduard-Michael Grosu (Delko), Mikel Aristi (Euskaltel-Euskadi), Pier-André Coté (Rally), Syves Waersted (Uno-X) and Dylan Kowalski (Xelliss-Roubaix Lille Métropole).
In the peloton, AG2R Citroën and Lotto Soudal took the initiative. At the start of the last hour of racing, five more riders were at the front: Bugter, Brunel, Grosu, Coté and Kowalski. They had less than a minute ahead of the thinned peloton, from which Kévin Van Melsen escaped and made the crossing. Van Melsen went on and over the leading group. The only one who could follow him was Brunel. Eventually another group managed to make the crossing from the peloton, after which Piet Allegaert (Cofidis), Olivier Le Gac (Groupama-FDJ), Connor Swift (Arkéa-Samsic) and Damien Touzé (AG2R Citroën) had the last lap to cover.
Baptiste Planckaert (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert) then jumped to the leading group, 10 kilometres from the finish, while the peloton followed at 30 seconds. John Degenkolb made an all-or-nothing attempt on one of the gravel sections, but the leader of Lotto Soudal did not get away.
At the front, Touzé had to let go of Le Gac, Swift, Planckaert and Allegaert in the final, which left four off the front. On the last gravel sector, Swift attacked again, but he couldn’t get away and so it would be a sprint of four. Well, actually five, as Rasmus Tiller crossed with a late attack with the peloton on his heels. Swift started the sprint first and crossed the line with his arms in the air, but Allegaert and Planckaert came dangerously close. A photo finish had to decide. Swift won by a very small gap from Allegaert with Planckaert finished in third place.
