Published on : 06/20/2026
This Saturday, the Route d'Occitanie concluded with a demanding final stage of 172.5 km between Loures-Barousse and Loudenvielle, featuring two Pyrenean climbs, the Hourquette d'Ancizan and the Col de Val Louron-Azet, before a finale punctuated by two passages through the Côte d'Estarvielle.
On this queen stage, the Cofidis team put in a huge effort, taking charge of the chase behind the morning breakaway. On the Col de Val Louron, Ion Izagirre hit a tough patch and was dropped, before fighting back on the descent and attacking in the finale to secure a strong 3rd place on the stage. Jamie Meehan and Simon Carr were also invaluable throughout the day, supporting their leader and keeping the team at the front of the race. In the overall standings, Ion Izagirre moved up to 3rd place, just ahead of teammate Jamie Meehan in 4th.
Reaction from Benjamin Giraud, sports director:
"Today was the queen stage, the mountain stage. We controlled a good part of the race with a strong, cohesive team that rode really well. The guys were there for our leader on the climbs. We came up against someone far too strong, who didn't let us fight for the stage win or the overall. But behind him, we defended well with an eventful, attacking finale where we went and got third place on the stage with Ion Izagirre. We also take third and fourth overall with Ion and Jamie Meehan. It's a positive result to wrap up this Route d'Occitanie."