Jacquelin, the cycling adventure is becoming increasingly interesting: top 15 in the flagship event at the Mediterranean Games

Emilien Jacquelin’s cycling adventure is proving decidedly interesting.

This afternoon, one of the stars of international biathlon, who put the sport “on hold” immediately after the conclusion of the Olympic season—one that brought him plenty of satisfaction, from his first individual medal in the Pursuit to victory with the men’s relay—lined up as the sole rider for the French national team (and therefore at a significant disadvantage when it came to the tactical management of the race) in the flagship event of the Mediterranean Games.

The road race, which finished on the seafront in Taranto, saw Italy dominate, as predicted given the not particularly high level of the competition and the fact that the host nation could field a prominent name such as Tommaso Dati (the reigning Italian runner-up and one of the revelations of the 2026 season). The Tuscan duly claimed the title, beating Portugal’s Tiago Antunes and teammate Federico Iacomoni in a three-man sprint.

Jacquelin attacked after the halfway point, was caught by the group around 70 km from the finish, then had to withstand the Italians’ attack before nevertheless finishing in 14th place.

Last week, the Olympic champion from Haute-Savoie—who, as we remember, embarked on this cycling adventure because it was a major dream of his, inspired by his sporting idol Marco Pantani—completed the four-day Tour du Limousin, his second professional race (a category 2.1 event, but with WorldTour teams at the start and a strong field). He made his mark by working extremely well for his Decathlon CMA teammates, above all the talented Noa Isidore, who took two stage wins.

Jacquelin also secured 26th place in the third stage and showed that he can keep pace with the best riders even on fairly demanding, though not exceptionally difficult, courses. His future in biathlon? In recent days, “Ski Chrono” quoted Emilien’s words, which offer no certainty about a return with skis on his feet and a rifle on his back, with the major goal of the home Olympic Games—Alpes 2030.

It is difficult to imagine that at 31 he could become a leading rider on the world stage, but for now his sole priority is cycling.