From the start, Van der Hoorn attacked with six other riders. They got a maximum lead of three and a half minutes. The lead was steadily diminished on the local laps in Mandal. Van der Hoorn tried to escape on the climb in the local lap, but that did not prove enough to battle for the stage win.

“Today, there was a good chance that a leading group would stay away”, Van der Hoorn explained. “I prepared myself well for the stage. On the first climb I started to attack and we got away with seven riders. I felt that it was possible to stay away today, but not everyone cooperated with full dedication. That was disappointing, because otherwise we probably could have made it. After that I tried to stay near the front to not lose any time. The feeling is good and I will definitely try again.”

There was also less good news for Team Jumbo-Visma. Jonas Vingegaard and Danny van Poppel both didn’t start today. The Dane suffered too much from his crash yesterday. He will undergo further examination in Denmark. Van Poppel has not been feeling fit for some time now and will also undergo the necessary examinations.