In the first stage of the Tour de Suisse, with start and finish in Sondrio, Italy, attention quickly turned to the second half of the stage, where the organisers had included several steep climbs. That was ultimately where the race exploded, when Pogacar launched his attack with 70 kilometres to go.

While the Slovenian rode solo to victory, Kelderman showed strong legs in the chase group. In the demanding finale, the Dutchman launched an attack on the steep final climb, eventually finishing seventh after a strong ride.

“It was not the race situation we had expected,” sports director Gaëton Pons reflected afterwards. “We expected the race to explode in the final 30 kilometres, but it happened much earlier. There was little we could do against Pogačar and his team, but Wilco rode a very strong race. It’s a performance that gives confidence for the coming days.”

In the upcoming stages, the Dutch team hopes to once again feature at the front. “There are still several good opportunities for us. Tomorrow we already face another tough finale in which we hope to compete with the strongest riders again. In the days that follow, we also have riders who can go for strong results. I saw a good team today, and that gives confidence,” the Belgian sports director concluded.