2015 Tour du Haut Var
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The 2015 Tour du Haut Var was the 47th edition of the Tour du Haut Var road cycling stage race,[1] held in the Provence region of France. It was rated as a 2.1 event as part of the 2015 UCI Europe Tour, and consisted of two stages over two days, from 21 to 22 February 2015.[2]
Ben Gastauer, overall winner of the 2015 Tour du Haut Var | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Race details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Dates | 21–22 February 2015 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stages | 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Distance | 362.5 km (225.2 mi) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Winning time | 9h 14' 21" | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Results | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Historically, the Tour du Haut Var was the third of three early-season French races, following the Étoile de Bessèges and the Tour Méditerranéen, but for the second year running the Tour Méditerranéen was cancelled due to financial problems, so the Tour du Haut Var came after a two-week break in French cycling.[3]
The 2015 race was particularly notable for returning to the difficult terrain that had been a feature of the race in its early years.[4] In contrast to most stage races, it favoured classics riders rather than pure climbing specialists, and was seen as excellent preparation for the classics season.[5]
The first stage of the race was won from the breakaway by Ben Gastauer (AG2R La Mondiale), who was able to defend his race lead in the second stage and take the overall victory in the race. These were the first victories of his professional career. The second stage was won by Luka Mezgec (Team Giant–Alpecin). Philippe Gilbert (BMC Racing Team), who finished on the podium both days, won the points classification. The mountains prize was won by Ignatas Konovalovas (Team Marseille 13 KTM) and the best young rider was Quentin Pacher (Armée de Terre). The best team was Bretagne–Séché Environnement.