The first stage took the riders over a varied parcours around Diest. After a relatively flat opening loop, a longer circuit followed, featuring, among others, the cobbled climbs of Heuvelstraat and Kerkstraat. In the finale, the riders were faced with a shortened lap several times, including the climb of Grasbos. From there, it was downhill towards the flat finish in Diest.

Early in the race, Kielich managed to ride away from the peloton together with several companions. The Belgian then spent a large part of the day at the front and, together with his breakaway companions, built up a solid advantage. “I actually got into the breakaway quite easily. Once we were away, we didn’t get a lot of room from the peloton, so we were able to take it relatively easy. Towards the local laps, we started to accelerate so that we could make sure to take the bonus sprints. I was able to take three seconds here, so I’m definitely happy with that,” said Kielich.

As the finish came closer, the gap continued to shrink. The breakaway held on for a long time, but in the final phase the peloton kept getting closer. “The group worked well together until two kilometers from the finish, then unfortunately it slowed down and we were caught with the last 500 meters to go. I’m very happy with the feeling and with how my first race after a long period of rehabilitation went.”

Head of Racing Marc Reef also looks back on the day with satisfaction: “It was a hectic first day due to the weather conditions. This was Timo’s first race after his injury, so it’s very good that he was able to show himself like this. Of course, it’s a shame that they were caught at the very last moment, but as a team we showed ourselves well and also tried to defend our chances as well as possible.”