Name: Etoile de Bessèges - Tour du Gard 2024
Start: 2024-01-31T17:10:00Z
End: 2024-02-04T17:00:00Z
Location: France

Riders forced to buy second-hand shoes after UCI issues late Ekoi pedal ban

UCI steps in after authorization file was yet to be validated, forcing riders to borrow pedals and buy shoes
Mads Pedersen goes deep to win Etoile de Bessèges

Kévin Vauquelin moves up to second overall after winning final time trial in Alès, Bettiol takes third
Etoile de Bessèges: Samuel Leroux holds off charging field to win stage 4

Dries De Bondt takes second, Stefan Bissegger third in breakaway sprint into Méjannes-le-Clap

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Etoile de Bessèges-Tour du Gard overview
Date	Wednesday January 31 to Sunday February 4
Start location	Bellegarde
Finish location	Alès
Distance	654.2km
Previous edition	2023 Etoile de Bessèges
Previous winner	Neilson Powless

2023 Etoile de Bessèges-Tour du Gard winner Neilson Powless (Image credit: Getty Images)

The five-day Etoile de Bessèges-Tour du Gard holds a special place in the cycling calendar as together with the Volta a la Comunitat Valenciana in Spain, which runs concurrently, Bessèges is traditionally the first stage racing event of the European season.
Created in 1971 by former pro Romain Fangille, (whose daughter Claudine Fangille-Allegre still organises it today) Bessèges is held entirely in the southerly Gard region of France. Bessèges usually has a less mountainous course than Comunitat Valenciana, meaning it is generally decided on the short last-day individual time trial.

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Date	Stage	Start time	Finish time
Jan 31, 2024	Stage 1: Bellegarde - Bellegarde, 160km	12:10 CET	15:49 CET
Feb 1, 2024	Stage 2: Marguerittes - Rousson, 163.5km	11:55 CET	15:48 CET
Feb 2, 2024	Stage 3: Bessèges - Bessèges, 161.1km	12:00 CET	15:49 CET
Feb 3, 2024	Stage 4: Méjannes-le-Clap - Méjannes-le-Clap, 158.4km	12:15 CET	15:49 CET
Feb 4, 2024	Stage 5: Alès - Alès	13:15 CET	16:15 CET