This is one of the emotions of the first year of the team Grand Est - Komugi - La Fabrique, Fernanda Yapura's Argentine championship title. At the age of 25, she won her first elite jersey in the time trial. The perfect opportunity to take her wheel and learn more about the rider. New episode for this athlete who landed in France almost 4 years ago! She is also a regular at the house, since after two seasons with Team Macadam's Cowboys (the former women's structure) she (re)discovers the professional world with her new team.
No hard feelings, Fernanda! France may have lost the last final of the football world cup, but we loved making your Argentine champion outfit! Coming from mountain biking, it is finally on the road that she will make and still has a career. Progressing year after year until he won his first national title last March in the timed event: "It was great, it's something I've been looking forward to. I won all the national titles as a junior but when I moved up to the elite I didn't have the opportunity to play it. Because I was racing here in Europe... But this year with the team, we saw that it was worth it to go out there and get this title 012751.".
The Tour de Suisse, the young team's first WorldTour event, was also the perfect moment for Fernanda to unveil her beautiful tunic. And this despite the day's vicissitudes: "To have the opportunity to show the colors of my country was incredible, I would have liked to have achieved better results and represented it as it should be, but unfortunately there were some problems that made me lose time on my time". Like the little thumbs of the event, the girls of the Grand Est - Komugi - La Fabrique team fought in the right way in order to achieve the best possible results: "It was a great experience, to be honest we were a little apprehensive about how it could go. But in the end it wasn't so bad, the girls gradually gained confidence and realized that they were capable of fighting at this level ».
Let's back up a bit. After two seasons with the UCI World Centre in Aigle, she bounced back in France. Fernanda joins a peloton that she likes with rough roads that allow her climbing skills to showcase. She adapts perfectly to the local and cycling culture, and learns the language of Molière to communicate with her teammates! Her two great seasons and her few bouquets within Team Macadam's Cowboys opened the doors to Laurent Goglione's new team, the Grand Est - Komugi - La Fabrique team, where she played a central role as captain. Both by sacrificing herself for her teammates and by seizing her chances when the road allows it. In a realism to be applauded, and which highlights her competitive character, she looks back on her start to the season:
"Personally it wasn't what I expected, I couldn't get the results I wanted. But that's the way it is! The goals set are not always achieved, but it is necessary to continue and review what mistakes have been made in order to improve. The atmosphere is nice, we support each other. Sometimes we have good days and bad days and that's when we feel that it's not just a team but a family. We motivate ourselves to try to give our best in every race. »
Nothing alarming, far from it. Not to mention that Fernanda is only 25 years old and has a lot of room for improvement. All while having a nice background in terms of experiences at the highest level! And best of all, the season is far from over:
"My goal is to be on the podium for the race in Poland (Editor's note: Princess Anna Vasa Tour) at the end of July and to get a good result in the Giro Toscana and the Tour de l'Ardèche. After that, I don't know yet, but maybe I'll compete at the World Championships in August and the Pan American Games in October. I believe in hard work and sacrifice. And in the last two years, I've been motivated and improved physically again. I still have a lot to show. »
And hopefully, another Argentine championship title in 2024, and this time in the road race. To be able to enjoy it all year round!
Thanks to Fernanda Yapura for the time and to Juliette Landon / Noam Meresse for the photo credits.
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