Paris (AFP)

Nacer Bouhanni will skip the Tour de France (August 29 to September 20), "a collegial decision made with his team Arkea-Samsic" in the opinion of the French sprinter.

"I quickly got used to this idea when the route of the Tour de France 2020 was unveiled. I quickly realized that it was primarily intended for climbers," said the Vosgien in an interview published on the site of French training.

"The Tour de France remains one of the main objectives of my career, which is to achieve a stage victory," added Bouhanni, who has never known success in his first three participations, unlike the Giro and de la Vuelta (three stage successes in each of these two major laps).

"I know that I have never had the opportunity to express myself 100% on this race, but it will inevitably come in the future," said the Lorrain (29 years old) who plans rather on the 2021 edition of the Grande Boucle, a priori more favorable to sprinters as soon as the start is given in Denmark.

Bouhanni, who must resume competition in Spain, at the Tour de Burgos (July 28 to August 1), expressed his "desire to have a big month in August", with Milan-Sanremo in particular on August 8. He also declared himself interested in a selection for the French team if the European championship took place in Plouay (Morbihan).

© 2020 AFP