After the early breakaway was reeled-in during the run-up to the final climb, Team Jumbo-Visma took the initiative to bring Kruijswijk, Kuss and Tolhoek in an ideal position.

“It was a good first day”, Kruijswijk said. “You always have to wait and see how the legs are after altitude training and because of the fact that it is my first race of the season. Such an explosive final is not really my thing, but the legs felt very good. It was a rather relaxed stage and the team did an excellent job by bringing me to the front in the final.”

Team manager Maassen concurred with his team leader. “Today, the goal was to bring Steven, Antwan and Sepp to the foot of the final climb as good as possible. With two riders in the top ten, we certainly had a good start. This gives us confidence and a good prospect for the rest of the week. Danny, Daan and Pascal have worked for the team extremely well. Jonas was not fit, but he finished the stage nevertheless.”