Greig Leach

Having gotten a gap on the way up the Kimmelberg, Christophe Laporte (Jumbo-Visma) and his teammate, Wout Van Aert pushed on whilst going down the other side of the climb. The two quickly opened up just over a minute on the disorganized peloton unable to get back on terms behind. The peloton was being frustrated by two more of this duo's teammates. With this situation, Jumbo-Visma was in an enviable position, should Laporte and Van Aert stay away, they will win. Should they be caught, then Nathan Van Hooydonck and Olav Kooij will be well rested and more than capable of mounting a very strong sprint for victory. Whether this was by design or good fortune, it was sure to be a winning strategy.