A leading group was caught well before the finish, after which the peloton raced at high speed to the foot of the final climb. Tolhoek was kept in front by his teammates of Team Jumbo-Visma. Due to his fourth place, Tolhoek moved up to the fourth place in the rankings.

“I have to compliment my teammates for the hard work”, Tolhoek said. “I waited until the last kilometre before I attacked. I tried to take advantage of the fact that I was not regarded the favourite. Up to the last two hundred metres, I battled for the win with Mas and Martínez. Unfortunately, when they started, I had already shot my bolt. I am very happy with the confidence of the team and I’ll keep fighting for the next chance.”

Sports director Addy Engels valued Tolhoek’s results. “A finish like this, with a very steep last mile, doesn’t lie. In such case, the fourth place is a good and nice result. I also have to compliment the other boys. They delivered perfect work today by putting Antwan in a good position.”