(ANS – Romans-sur-Isère) – The area around Romans-sur-Isère, in the Drôme department, hosted the 25th edition of the French Cycling Championship for Clergy and Religious on Thursday 30 April and Friday 1 May 2026. The winner, for the second consecutive year, was Belgian Salesian Fr Xavier Ernst, current Superior of the France-Belgium South (FRB) province, who on the first day won the time trial between Bourg-de-Péage and Marches (ahead of another Salesian, Br Alban Pelletier) and on the second day the road race as well. Among the 68 participants in total, the Salesian team also included Daughter of Mary Help of Christians, Marthe Rios, and Fr Pierre Verger, who told the local press: “Cycling was very important to me during my teenage years: I discovered my willpower during a youth cycling camp in the mountains…” And regarding the race: “We can come together as a group and there we support one another, we take turns. This says something about the Church and is somewhat a reflection of life, and of the Christian faith: being with and for others, with and for Christ”.
