On the eve of the Walloon spring classic, Benoot and partner Fien welcomed their second daughter Loes. Despite a short night, the proud team leader appeared at the start in Charleroi. "Together with my family I decided to start here. I am also glad I was there. La Flèche Wallonne was a goal of mine. I rode the race on adrenaline and euphoria," Benoot said afterwards.

During a quiet run-up phase of the race - which is traditionally decided on the final climb of the steep Mur de Huy - a breakaway of six was given breathing space by the peloton. Towards the first of four climbs of that Mur de Huy, the weather conditions worsened. The riders had to endure heavy showers of hail, snow and rain. Many riders abandoned the race after the first climb of the Mur. The leading group was quickly caught by the reduced peloton including Tiesj Benoot, Johannes Staune-Mittet and Tim van Dijke.

Moments later, Søren Kragh Andersen tried his luck with a solo attack. Behind the Dane, a chasing group of five emerged. Controlled by Uno-X Mobility and Team Visma | Lease a Bike, among others, those attempts were also nullified with less than 20 kilometres to go. Towards the final climb of Mur de Huy, Staune-Mittet and Van Dijke did a great job to bring leader Benoot in a promising position at the foot. After finishing seventh in 2023, the Belgian eventually had to settle for ninth, ten seconds behind winner Williams.

"Considering the conditions, I felt good today," Benoot stated. "I haven't often felt so cold during a race. As the final climb approached, I felt better. But in the end the legs did run empty. All in all, a top-ten place in La Flèche Wallonne remains an excellent result. I'm heading optimistically to next Sunday's Liège-Bastogne-Liège."

Tim van Dijke continues his good form, which he already showed with a 16th place in Paris-Roubaix. The 24-year-old Dutchman, along with another Team Visma | Lease a Bike Development youth product - Staune-Mittet - assisted his leader in the final. "My job was to bring Tiesj as well as possible at the foot of the final climb," Van Dijke responded afterwards. "It was not a nice day on the bike. During the hailstorm it felt like stones were being fired at me. Everything hurt. Even shifting gears became difficult. I started here to assist Tiesj, so I didn't want to let him down. I am satisfied that I could play a role in the final of a Walloon classic with a lot of altimeters. This year I have made huge steps forward. I am still trying to improve every day."

Sports director Arthur van Dongen looks back on his riders' performance. "I am proud of how the men showed themselves today. They made the race hard and stood by Tiesj until the end. For riders like Johannes, Tim and Loe (van Belle), who were part of our Development Team in previous years, this was a very instructive day given the weather conditions. We deserved maybe a little more than that ninth place, but the Mur de Huy doesn't lie."