He tried professional racing as a stagiaire, or apprentice, with the Française des Jeux team in 1997, riding at the Élite 2 level. From there he moved to next year as a full professional to Festina.
In 1997, he began his professional racing career as an apprentice rider for the Française des Jeux team at the Élite 2 level. The next year, he became a full-fledged professional cyclist for Festina.