Anthon Charmig claimed the second stage of the 2026 Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes as he timed his late attack to perfection to solo away from a seven-rider group, who missed out on a sprint decision for the second day in a row.
Charmig finished first on the longest stage of the race with no less than 230 kms to cover from Saint-Martin-le-Vinoux to Le Puy-en-Velay, which included four categorised climbs and a testing finale, which gave all potential attackers with enough gas left in the tank a perfect opportunity for a breakaway.
Charmig was part of a seven-rider lead group heading towards the final climb, where Charmig, Braz Afonso, and Garcia Pierna opened a decisive gap. Vlad Van Mechelen was on the verge of making contact with the trio when Charmig attacked to build up a narrow advantage over Garcia Pierna and Braz Afonso, and the Dane never looked back again as he used the downhill run towards Le Puy-en-Velay to extend his lead.
It's a fantastic feeling", said Charmig after the race in the winner's interview. "I don't get that many chances in a season, so you have to take it when you get it. It's a great feeling. I am so happy to be here," and elaborated on how he decided the stage for himself.
"My patience was good. It was a really, really long stage, so it was all about conserving energy for the end. On the penultimate climb, I knew it was a little too long for my liking. So I tried to be patient and not panic when they drove away. I worked well with Benjamin Thomas, in particular in terms of getting us back, and then the last climb was good for my style. So that was cool."
