Antwan Tolhoek has shown his great climbing potential in the second mountain stage of the Dauphiné. In the fifth stage with finish on top of Valmorel, the 24-year-old rider climbed to the tenth place, twenty-six seconds behind stage winner Daniel Martin. In the overall standings, Tolhoek has now moved up to the seventeenth place with two more heavy Alps stages to come.

It was a far from an easy stage with an ascending road at the start. Tolhoek was well-protected by Sepp Kuss and Lars Boom all day and was well-positioned at the ascent of the final climb. After the work was done, Kuss did a decent final climb himself as well and finished in twenty-eighth place.

“I was feeling fine. Better than yesterday. This is really nice, top ten!”, Tolhoek said. “It was a tough stage from the start, but Lars worked well for me all day. I’m glad that I can climb here with the best. Really super. It’s a pity that there are only four of us left, but as a team we’re riding very well. Sepp has also shown that his level is high. He’s proven this on the climbs. Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow will be complete chaos. It’s going up and down all the time. I’ve done a reconnaissance for both stages, but I will take it day by day and hopefully this will lead to some more good results.”

“We knew that Antwan is in good shape. And that he’s able to show this”, sports director Grischa Niermann said. “It’s nice that he’s finished in the top ten here and that he’s showed his potential. He also finished tenth in the WorldTour race in Abu Dhabi during an uphill finish, but this race is on a completely different level. In principle, the next two days must suit him even better. He did a reconnaissance for both stages. If he can maintain his level, he’ll show some more nice things. Sepp Kuss and Lars Boom did a lot of work today and put Antwan in the wheel of the leader at the ascent of the final climb. They were very strong.”