Brandon Fedrizzi Claims Opening Stage Victory and First Yellow Jersey at Course de la Paix Juniors

Litoměřice, May 7, 2026 – Italy’s Brandon Fedrizzi made a winning start to the 54th edition of the Course de la Paix Juniors by taking victory in the opening stage from Litoměřice to Úštěk and securing the first yellow jersey of the race after a demanding 110.2-kilometre stage through the hills of the Ústí nad Labem Region.

The opening day immediately produced aggressive racing on the selective course around Úštěk, featuring five mountain primes and three intermediate sprints. The decisive move of the day formed after the first ascent of Ostré, when six riders went clear at the front of the race: Mads Furunes (NOR), Alban Picard (FRA), Miha Otoničar (SLO), Brandon Fedrizzi (ITA), Jop Van den Biggelaar (NED) and Luan Elsasser (GER).

With Belgium missing the move, the chasing work behind the breakaway was largely organised by the Belgian national team, while the front group continued to build an advantage over the demanding terrain.

The race remained highly active across the classified climbs and intermediate sprints. Mexico’s riders animated the early mountain primes, while Fedrizzi, Furunes, Otoničar and Van den Biggelaar featured prominently during the decisive phase of the stage.

The race exploded again on the final ascent, where Picard and Otoničar lost contact with the leading group. Behind them, several general classification contenders attempted to bridge across, including Karl Herzog (GER), Seff Van Kerckhove (BEL) and Soen Le Pann (FRA), but no decisive separation was created from the reduced peloton.

At the front, Fedrizzi and Furunes proved the strongest riders in the finale. The Italian rider eventually secured the stage victory in Úštěk after 2:40:12 of racing at an average speed of 41.273 km/h, with Furunes finishing second at two seconds. Canada’s Amos Scott Bouris completed the podium at four seconds after leading the first chasing group across the line.

Thanks to the time bonuses collected during the stage, Fedrizzi also moved into the overall lead of the race. Furunes sits second in the general classification at nine seconds, with Bouris third at fourteen seconds.

Italy also took the lead in the teams classification after Stage 1, ahead of Norway and France.

Stage 1 – Litoměřice–Úštěk (110.2 km)

Brandon Fedrizzi (ITA) – 2:40:12
Mads Furunes (NOR) +0:02
Amos Scott Bouris (CAN) +0:04
Stan Vernaillen (BEL) +0:04
Jop Van den Biggelaar (NED) +0:04

General Classification after Stage 1

Brandon Fedrizzi (ITA) – 2:39:58
Mads Furunes (NOR) +0:09
Amos Scott Bouris (CAN) +0:14
Jop Van den Biggelaar (NED) +0:14
Gal Stare (SLO) +0:15