April 8, 2005 – Cofidis rider Sylvain Chavanel, who went into the final stage of the Circuit de la Sarthe stage race with a slim 5-second overall lead, nonetheless managed to drop all his close markers on the second to last climb of the finishing circuit in Le Mans to score a solo win in the final stage and take the overall.

It was a gutsy move for the rider from nearby Chatellerault, who preferred to pre-empt any last-ditch attacks with a jump of his own and held off a final chase by Markus Fothen (Gerolsteiner). A tremendous victory for 26-year-old Chavanel, who’d already won the time trial stage of the event in 2003, giving him two strong showings in a race that often crowns up and coming talent.

Canada’s Mike Barry (Discovery), who’d gone into the final stage tied for 11th on GC, only 18 seconds down on the eventual winner, had a solid ride in the final stage and climbed into the top 10, finishing ninth, one second ahead of Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile).

Final GC

1. CHAVANEL Sylvain COFIDIS,LE CREDIT PAR TEL (FRA)
2. FOTHEN Markus GEROLSTEINER (GER) 1:03
3. BILEKA Volodymyr DISCOVERY CHANNEL P.C.T. (UKR) 1:11
4. MURAVYEV Dmitry CREDIT AGRICOLE (KAZ) 1:46
5. MARTINEZ TRINIDAD J. AGRITUBEL (ESP) 2:09
6. VAITKUS Tomas AG2R PREVOYANCE (LTU) 2:14
7. SEIGNEUR Eddy R.A.G.T.SEMENCES (FRA) 2:15
8. BROCHARD Laurent BOUYGUES TELECOM (FRA) 2:16
9. BARRY Michael DISCOVERY CHANNEL P.C.T. 2:19
10. ULLRICH Jan T-MOBILE TEAM (GER) 2:20