This Monday in the U23 version of the prestigious Eschborn-Frankfurt, Aklilu Arefayne sprinted to the podium.
At the other side of the river Rhine, Aklilu Arefayne sprinted for the victory and achieved a prestigious podium in the U23 version of Eschborn-Frankfurt. The 18 year old Eritrean rider contested his very first UCI race in Europe, one week after a decent start on the continent in the Arden Challenge, in which he ended fifteenth in the final classification.
Frenchman Alexy Faure participated in the attacks on the Feldberg, the main difficulty situated halfway through the course of 108 kilometer. But despite the attacks, a complete peloton headed towards Frankfurt. Arefayne took third place, his teammates Alessio Delle Vedove (7th) and Tim Rex (8th) accompanied him in the top ten.
« Four weeks ago I received a warm welcome for my first arrival in Europe and since then on I discovered a lot thanks to the support of the team. I learn something new each day. In terms of training for example, with my trainer Christophe Prémont. The five day Arden Challenge last week was the first race our sports director Kévin Van Melsen planned for me. It was quite a challenge to race in bad weather circumstances, but a good first experience with my teammates in Belgium. Today I participated in my first European UCI race and I immediately sprinted to the podium, an incredible result! » « We were here with five 18 year old riders of Circus-ReUz-Technord. Alexy Faure followed all attacks on the Feldberg, but in the end a bunch sprint was unavoidable on this course. We did everything to bring Alessio Delle Vedove in a good position. Unfortunately he was boxed in, so in extremis I had to take over his role. Maybe it was even possible to do better than third. Anyway, this podium makes me really happy. It is an important experience for my next races, starting with La Flèche Ardennaise next week. »
