Arnaud Démare (FDJ) won the fourth stage of the Etoile des Besseges on Saturday, outsprinting Alexander Kristoff (Katusha-Alpecin) and Christophe Laporte of Cofidis. Lilian Calmejane (Direct Energie) retained the overall lead on a day that saw a breakaway group stay away nearly to the end.
It was the second stage win in the race for reigning Milan-Sanremo champion Démare, who won the first stage and was also third on stage 2. The Frenchman sprinted to victory in stage 4 after the day's breakaway was caught just a kilometre from the finish line.
The peloton rolled through the vineyards for just over 30 km before a successful break group formed. Jelle Wallays (Lotto Soudal), Nico Denz (AG2R La Mondiale), Ángel Madrazo Ruiz (Delko Marseille Provence KTM), Preben Van Hecke (Sport Vlaanderen - Baloise), Wesley Kreder (Wanty - Groupe Gobert), Fabricio Ferrari (Caja Rural-Seguros RGA) and Kevyn Ista (WB Veranclassic Aqua Protect) were the lucky seven. Massimo Vanderaerden (An Post Chain Reaction) gave chase but never caught up. The gap stabilized at around 2:45.
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But what goes up must come down. With 70km to go, the gap had plummeted to 1:30, and continued to fall. The stage ended with five laps of a circuit course that included, each time, a climb up the Mur de Laudan. The gap see-sawed from 30 seconds to two minutes.
Ferrari dropped out of the lead group with mechanical problems, but the remaining six stayed strong and took 38 seconds into the final 16-km lap. They fought hard and clung desperately to their lead, taking 10 seconds into the final 2km, but were caught again within 1km of the finish.
That set up the bunch sprint, with Démare outsprinting Kristoff, just as he had done in the opening stage.
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