With several short and explosive climbs, the fourth stage of the French stage race was similar to the first three stages. Team Visma | Lease a Bike Development, which started the final stage without the not quite fit Matthew Brennan, did everything possible to maintain Graat's third place.

Thanks in part to Jed Smithson, Morten Nørtoft and Tom Schellekens, Graat crossed the line in eighth place and secured third place in the overall standings. "I can be satisfied with this. Of course you hope for more and do everything you can to move up another place, but unfortunately this was it. Two men were simply stronger," Graat said.

The youngster, who will be part of the WorldTour team from 2025, owed his first podium finish of the season mainly to his strong performance in the third stage, in which he was among the best climbers. "Yesterday's stage suited me. I especially like the longer climbs. I was in the breakaway for a long time and was able to move up a few spots by finishing fifth."

For Graat, who rode O Gran Camino and Coppi e Bartali with the WorldTour team earlier this season, it was his first race on behalf of the Development Team. A conscious choice, he said. "We chose this race to challenge me. Here I learn to position, ride better corners and climb better. Besides, I really liked going for my own chance."

With four top-ten finishes, a third place in the overall classification and the win in the team classification, it was a successful week for Sierk-Jan de Haan's team. The race coach is very pleased with the performances. "The goal was to finish as good as possible in every stage and that worked out well. The boys did a great race," De Haan said.

"Today we did everything we could to secure Tijmen's third place. We knew it was going to be difficult because Tijmen specializes more in longer climbs. This was a course where you had to accelerate a lot. The guys kept a constant eye on Tijmen so he was well positioned going into the final circuit. Tom played a nice role in the final by not only countering several attacks, but also finishing fourth. As a team we were very strong and it's fantastic that it was rewarded with the team classification."