On the seventeen kilometre course around Khalifa harbour, Team Jumbo-Visma got off to a slow start. "You could say that with the benefit of hindsight”, Wynants replied. "In the first part, we started a bit too cautiously, but in the second part, we maintained the speed well. Technically it was a good time trial, but we can conclude that we started too slowly.”

For the team, the team time trial in Abu Dhabi was mainly about gaining experience. "We are here with a relatively young squad, without our specialists. The result may be disappointing for many, but we had anticipated the loss of nineteen seconds”, said Wynants, who saw Michel Hessman playing an important role today.

The 21-year-old German is the team's strongest time trialist at the UAE Tour and led the team. "He took responsibility today. He showed how strong he is with his long turns. Michel is developing well.”

The same can be said for Thomas Gloag, who has just started racing at the highest level. The seven-day stage race in the Middle East is his first WorldTour race. "The team time trial was a good learning experience for Tom, his first with the pros. He was very strong in the Tour of Valencia and even won the young rider classification. Now he can show that tomorrow against the real top riders”, the sports director said.

The longest stage of the week is scheduled for Wednesday. After a long day of cycling through the desert with many altimetres, the peloton will finish on the Jebel Jais, a climb of around twenty kilometres. "It will be a tough day with a tough finish. Sepp has recovered well from his crash in the first stage and is ready for a good result.”