IPT Academy rider Pau Martí wins Course de la Paix
IPT Academy rider Pau Martí followed in the footsteps of Tadej Pogačar (2018) and Grand Tour stage winner David Gaudu (2016) by winning the Course de la Paix on Sunday.
Riding for a Spanish national team, Martí produced a consistent display across the four stages of the UCI Nations Cup race in the Czech Republic to take the biggest victory of his career to date.
The 20-year-old finished second in the race’s opening stage on Thursday, before third place in Saturday’s penultimate stage moved him into the yellow jersey. Despite only holding a two-second gap over nearest rival Simon Dalby (Denmark), he avoided any problems in Sunday’s stage between Jeseník and Šumperk to wrap up his victory.
“This victory is really special for me,” says Martí. “It’s my first UCI GC victory, so I’m really happy and excited.
“The final stage was a really difficult day: it was hard, it was short, and every GC guy tried to flick us! But the team helped me reach the finish line with all of my rivals.”
This race formed part of Martí’s build-up to the Giro Next Gen, which begins in two weeks’ time (Sunday June 15) in Lombardy. He finished third overall last year, aged just 19, after a strong performance by the IPT Academy squad.
“This victory at Course de le Paix shows that preparations are going well for the Baby Giro,” Martí adds.
Photos: Course de la Paix
