Isle of Man cyclist Sam Brand enjoyed an excellent day in the saddle in France recently. 

The 33-year-old from Peel was competing in the La Roue Tourangelle one-day race which saw the peloton tackle a 200-kilometre route from Descartes to Tours. 

Riding for the all-diabetic Team Novo Nordisk, Brand managed to get himself into the day’s main breakaway in the opening few kilometres which allowed him to contest the intermediate sprints and go for king of the mountain points.  

After finishing first in both sprints at Bournan and Sainte-Maure, the Manxman topped the sprint competition to claim his place on the podium, while also finishing fourth in the KotM class. 

Speaking afterwards, a delighted Sam said: ‘We wanted to have someone represented in the front. I was happy to force the move and when we went, the peloton was content with our combination.  

‘We worked well together. With the small technical roads, it was actually less stressful being in the front than being in the peloton.  

‘I thought I’d give it a crack in the sprints as I was feeling good. I’m so happy to represent the team on the podium afterwards. With [team-mate] Matyas [Kopecky] sneaking in for a top 10, it was a good day for us.’