A French one-day race where positioning matters more than pedigree
Cholet Agglo Tour
Cholet Agglo Tour rewards sharp positioning and the ability to handle repeated accelerations on roads that rarely forgive hesitation.
- Location
- 🇫🇷 France
- When
- First Saturday in October
- Course
- One Day
- Most recent winner
- 🇧🇪 Jenthe Biermans (2026)
- Category
- Men’s Continental
About Cholet Agglo Tour
Cholet Agglo Tour is a men's one-day bike race held in western France, typically in early spring. The race runs through the Pays de la Loire region, where the terrain and tactical demands favor riders who can handle sudden changes in pace and navigate tight finishes.
This is the kind of race where coverage can turn quickly from controlled buildup to a decisive final hour. The roads around Cholet rarely flatten into predictable sprint finishes, and the race often rewards riders who can read positioning battles and respond to late accelerations. It sits in that useful calendar window where form is still being tested and outcomes remain genuinely open.
Cholet Agglo Tour winners
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2026 | 🇧🇪Jenthe Biermans |
| 2025 | 🇸🇰Lukas Kubis |
| 2024 | 🇫🇷Paul Lapeira |
| 2023 | 🇳🇿Laurence Pithie |
| 2022 | 🇫🇷Marc Sarreau |
| 2021 | 🇮🇹Elia Viviani |
2026 results
This edition is complete.
Cholet Agglo Tour route
The course typically features rolling terrain with short, punchy climbs and technical sections that prevent the race from settling into a pure sprint. Positioning becomes critical in the final 30 kilometers, where narrow roads and frequent direction changes can split the field. Breakaways are common but rarely survive unless they contain riders willing to commit fully in the closing circuits. The finish often comes down to a reduced group sprint or a late attack from riders who can accelerate out of the final corners. Weather in early spring can add another variable, turning already technical roads into tests of bike handling as much as power.
What shapes the race
Loire Valley terrain
The race runs through the rolling countryside around Cholet in western France, with terrain that suits sprinters and puncheurs.
Spring form test
Held in March, the race functions as an early-season fitness check for French domestic teams and international continental squads.
History
Iconic victories
Elia Viviani
Won in 2021, demonstrating that the race can attract proven WorldTour sprinters when the calendar and the terrain align.
Eras and records
A French spring race with deep domestic roots, anchored in Cholet and the rolling terrain of the Loire Valley.
First edition
First held in 1979 under various names including Cholet-Pays de la Loire. A fixture of the French spring domestic calendar.