Romain Grégoire (Groupama-FDJ) has launched a pointed attack on the way race results were changed not once but twice after stage 3 of Itzulia Basque Country, which saw the Frenchman promoted from second to the stage winner, only to lose that top spot again and drop back to second.
Spanish National Champion Alex Aranburu, first across the line at Beasain, was finally declared the winner of stage 3, after an initial penalisation deprived the Cofidis racer of the victory. It was claimed Aranburu had taken a 'short cut' in the final kilometre by taking a right, not a left, round a roundabout.
However, both rider and Cofidis staff subsequently pointed out that Aranburu had in fact been following race route book specifications when he went off course with some 800 metres to go and soloed to his win. The race commissaires opted to rectify and, in another results switch, re-award him the triumph.
As a result of the controversial changes of decision, Grégoire went up onto the winner's podium to receive the top prize on Wednesday evening, only to be told minutes later that he had, in fact, been pushed back into second place again.
"I knew these things can happen from time to time," Grégoire told a small group of media at the stage 4 start, including cyclingpro.net, "from the [Volta ao] Algarve to Ardeche to here," - a reference to the various incidents this season where race finish signalling issues have seen riders go off course in the closing kilometre.
However, he was very critical of the decision to switch the results not once, but twice.
"When I learned about the decision in the bus…it's just not possible to change the results so many times.
"I think if I'd have finished second directly, I'd have accepted it without any problems. But to go back on their decision after two hours, after the podium ceremony, I think that's mediocre, at best."
As for what actually happened out on the road, Grégoire said "I don't know what to think of it, honestly. The route book acts as a guide for the riders, so logically Aranburu was following that, he was 100% right."
"At the same time he went behind the signallers" - who were indicating riders should head left round the roundabout, not right as Aranburu opted to go - "so it's a bit paradoxical, there are two points of view. "
"As I said, too bad, what's happened, happened, he followed the route book, so I think it's normal that he got the win. On the other hand, changing those [post-stage] decisions twice in two hours - that's not great. Both for him and for me, that's not ideal."
"I couldn't believe what was happening," Aranburu added to Eurosport at the stage 4 start when he was asked bout his feelings over the initial loss of his victory "I knew we had to go down the right-hand side, as was in the route book and in Veloviewer, just as we had studied it, and that's why I couldn't believe it."
Finally victorious, and albeit some 18 hours late, Aranburu was awarded the winner's trophy in a short ceremony before stage 4, which began in the previous day's finish town of Beasain and finishes in Markina-Xemein. A local racer who lives less than 15 kilometres away, Aranburu's considerably delayed victory celebrations were greeted with a huge round of applause from watching fans, with the stage getting underway shortly afterwards.
