Tesson finishes strongly to claim title

French-rider Philippe Tesson yesterday became the 2001 NCBI Stena Line Junior Tour champion, joining the list of previous winners which includes riders of the calibre of Tour de France stage-winner Martin Earley and 1998 world junior champion Mark Scanlon.

Tesson, competing with the VC La Pomme squad, successfully staved off attacks from his rivals to retain the one minute 42 seconds lead he took on Saturday's tough mountain stage.

Tesson had broken clear after the first ascent of the category one Sally Gap climb, storming into a commanding lead and riding the last 45 miles of the race alone. He finished with a decisive advantage of almost two minutes over a group of four, which included best young rider Nicolas Roche.

Ireland team-rider Philip Deignan rode courageously in defence of his race lead but finished a further six seconds back to slip to second overall.

Yesterday's sixth and final leg of the race could have resulted in further changes, but strong riding by Tesson and his team-mates ensured the field finished en masse at Blessington. The bunch sprint was won by a charging Bart Kerkdijk of the Dutch Tempo Veldhoven team, with Irish riders Stephen Enright and Paudi O'Brien finishing strongly to place second and third.

Deignan safely retained the runner-up position while Nicolas Roche, son of 1987 Tour de France winner Stephen, ended the race fourth overall. He also won the white jersey for best first year junior.

"This is my first international win, and I am very happy," said Tesson afterwards. "The race was very difficult, the other riders were all very competitive and the Irish weather was pretty testing. But my team all rode strongly to help me win."

The Ireland squad performed well during the race, winning two stages (Deignan and O'Brien) and finished second behind Tempo Veldhoven in the teams classification.

Meanwhile, Mark Scanlon won the under-21 competition at the end of the Mi-Aout Bretonne race in France yesterday.

Scanlon had rode consistently during the four-day race, amassing enough points to finish best of the young riders. Ireland team-mate David McCann placed 14th on the tough final stage, which saw few riders finish.