Milan Fretin (Cofidis) swept past Paul Hennequin (Nice Métropole Côte d’Azur) in the final 25 metres and won the opening stage of 4 Jours de Dunkerque. Sam Bennett (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) settled for third place in the bunch sprint in the seaside town of Le Touquet.
Hennequin accelerated from the strung-out peloton with one kilometre to go and looked to have a winning move through the sweeping left-hand corner and 400 metres to the finish. But on the long, flat drag to the line, the 23-year-old Cofidis rider burst from the bunch and blew past Hennequin for his first victory of the year.
