Young Artem Fofonov is the first rider to feature on this site. The French rider from the U19 AG2R Citroen is a great talent from big cycling stock, as his father Dimitri was a WorldTour pro for over ten years, and is now sports manager with Astana-Qazaqstan.
Artem is a 2005 rider, so he has only just embarked on his junior career. But in his first two UCI races, he has already made a really nice impact for one of the best junior teams in the world, stacked with future pros. If you think I’m joking, there are easily ten guys who could be pros on that team born in 2004 or 2005. It’s ridiculous how talented this AG2R U19 team are.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Artem recently as I launched my site, and you can read on to get to know the talented rider better. Firstly, we looked at how he has started his season.
“I have done my first UCI races this month in Italy and Spain and this was a great first experience. The adaptation is going well as I am surrounded with great people in the team that are giving me great advice in order to progress.”
Given his young age and inexperience with UCI races, Artem understandably can’t be certain with his capabilities yet, but he did point out some things he has noticed suit him so far and some that do not.
“As you said, it is early to say something about my profile type, but I would say that I prefer climbing and I really like long and fast races. I am trying to have as few weaknesses as possible, but I am definitely not a sprinter.”
Something that amazes me about some U23s, and all juniors, is how the balance the life of a student with that of a cyclist. Artem explains that he has a good schedule at school that allows him to do both.
“I have the chance to have a good schedule at school that gives me the opportunity to train during the week.”
As the man himself mentioned, Fofonov has just done his first junior races, and he really impressed. 12th at the hard Giro di Primavera one-day race in Italy got the ball rolling, before he did a good job again supporting his leaders at the Gipuzkoa Klasika stage race in the Basque Country, and he took 18th overall. We chatted about what these results mean for Artem going forward.
“It gives me some ideas for next races of course. It shows that the work done since I am in the team is good and I will continue like that in order to achieve the next personal and team goals.”
Given the professionalism of AG2R Citroen U19, there is the amazing atmosphere of feeling like a pro before you even turn 17 sometimes. I asked the 17-year-old what it means to be part of a set-up like AG2R Citroen U19.
“It is a big opportunity to be in this team. We are prepared for real life at the same time in sport and also in general life. I am just enjoying my time with the team and trying to do the best.”
Having goal races is not something on Artem’s mind at this point in the season, but he hopes to keep working hard for the team and doing his best, taking his chances for results when they present themselves.
“My goal is to continue in this dynamic by helping the team, trying if I have the opportunity and to improve my results. It is a bit soon to give you especially one race that I am preparing for the moment.”
Fofonov told me about his next appointments, with a certain Belgian race being on the cards for him to show himself.
“I will race in France at Tour Pays d’Ollièrgues and my next race with the team is going to be the Ronde Van Vlaanderen.”
Finally, I ended the interview by asking Artem what his dream pro races are. He was gracious to tell me about his favourite Classic and stage race, as well as why he loves them so much.
“I would choose Liege-Bastogne-Liege as a one-day race because this race as a profile that I love with all those climbs and also, I really like the atmosphere on this race. As a stage race, it would be Tour de France, as it is a race for climbers and I really like the profile of the race.”
Artem Fofonov is a really great talent, and he is going to be even better as he gets older. I still think he can be a really big player this season, so keep an eye on his results in the coming months and years.
Junior Cycling Zone wishes to thank Artem for taking the time to answer my questions, and I wish him all the best for the rest of the season and beyond. I also wish to thank Alex at AG2R Citroen U19 for coordinating the interview. I really appreciate cooperation from teams and riders since my site is so new, it means a lot! You can find the team on Twitter here, where they run a really good site with a lot of great content. Artem can be found on Twitter here.
Peloton Parlour 