Maëlle Grossetête: “The discipline that made me love cycling” – Balita
After almost five years, Maëlle Grossetête returned to cyclo-cross. FDJ-Suez-Futuroscope member found the plow in early November. 6th in the 2018 French Championship explains his choice DirectVelowithout forgetting to mention the last season on the road – his fifth with the pros – and look forward to the coming year 2023. Interview with the 24-year-old Haut-Savoyarde, who now lives in Cannes (Alpes-Maritimes) .
DirectVelo: Why did you decide to return to cyclo-cross?
Maëlle Grossetête: I want to do it again in a few years. This is the discipline that made me fall in love with cycling. With Evita Muzic and Jade Wiel, the team provides us with bikes that allow us to make a short time in winter preparation. I thank them. It’s hard in the middle of winter for me to do too much training intensity. Efforts of 45-50 minutes at full speed will do my heart good in anticipation of the start of the road season. I think it is a major asset if you manage well.
“TECHNICALLY I LOST A LOT”
When did you resume plowing competitions?
I started at the beginning of November with a regional cyclo-cross in Antibes, near my home in Cannes. I didn’t finish because I had a puncture and I only had one bike with me. Last Friday, I ran in Jura. I received my bikes yesterday (Saturday). This Sunday, I tested the equipment for my first UCI cross in Auxerre. He answered well. This is good for the future.
How was your race at Auxerre?
I started off a bit cautiously. Maybe I braked too much before the first corner. Suddenly I became the 7th and I kept this place (check the ranking). Physically, I didn’t go along even though I stumbled a bit at the end. Technically, the more the race progressed, the less efficient I became. I see that technically, in four years, I lost a lot. I keep losing time. I know what to do for the next competitions.
What’s left of your program?
I will not go to Camors (Morbihan) because it is far. I manage from a logistical point of view, I don’t want to travel too much to avoid fatigue. I will do a regional cross this weekend. Then, I will go to two UCI events in Charleville-Mézières (Gernelle and La Grandville, Editor’s Note). I will continue with two rounds of the Coupe de France in Troyes then I will leave for a training course in Altea, in Spain. I will be back in January for the French Championship. I will try to do one or two regional crosses before the Championship, but I will not go to Belgium.
“BEING THERE AT THE LIMIT SWITCHES IN THE CLASSICS”
With what ambitions do you go to the French Championship in Bagnoles-de-l’Orne?
It’s hard to say what my purpose is because it’s been four years since I arrived. I’m like a beginner, I’m starting from scratch. There are women who do that. In France, there is a good level. I want to make a podium but it seems complicated to me. I want to be more comfortable technically to get more fun and lose less speed. I will try to do good and have no regrets.
Regarding the road, how do you judge your year 2022?
It was done in two parts: a very complicated first where I had Covid. I am so small, I have no sensations. It took me three months. I failed, I expected more of myself. Then a better second part, with good races and good sensations. I finished at the Grand Prix d’Isbergues (September 18, Editor’s note) then I cut off a month. I am currently in a physio internship for my studies. September is over, I have two more weeks. That’s why I finished the season earlier and now I can be in cross country. I still have a year and a half of schooling left, mostly away.
What are your expectations for 2023?
I want to continue the same form I had at the end of the season, or even better. I want to attack directly to get to the end of the Classics race which suits me best and to support my leaders. If I can take advantage of an opportunity by being offensive, I will not deprive myself as I have done in the past. (by finishing 2nd in a stage of the Simac Ladies Tour in 2021, read here), after escaping over 100 kilometers.
