With 50 kilometers remaining, a major crash occurred in the peloton. At the time, all eight Team Visma | Lease a Bike riders were attentively positioned at the front, while a group mid-pack slid out on the slippery roads. The jury decided to neutralize the race and later announced there would be no time gaps recorded for the general classification. Bonus seconds and points for the points classification were also scrapped.

“I think the jury made a wise decision”, said Wout van Aert afterward. “Crashes can happen in any race, but at one point the roads were extremely slick. It was the right call to stop the race and give everyone who had been held up a chance to rejoin.”

In a significantly reduced peloton, Team Visma | Lease a Bike had to work hard to bring back the two early breakaway riders. In the final kilometer, Van Aert launched with Kooij in his wheel. The latter deliberately left a small gap. About 200 meters from the line, Van Aert was caught, and Kooij opened up his sprint. The Dutchman saw a gap and went for it, but just as he was getting up to speed, Matteo Moschetti shut the door. The Italian was later disqualified for the move, but by then Kooij’s chance was gone. He crossed the line in tenth place.

Kooij reflected afterward: “When Wout went with 800 meters to go, I decided to hold back slightly. I felt that was the right move at that moment. After he was caught, I saw a gap on the inside and went for it—it’s the fastest line, and a sprinter’s instinct is to take it. But unfortunately, I wasn’t the only one thinking that, and the space quickly disappeared. It’s frustrating not to have had a chance to sprint for the win today.”

“I think both Olav and Wout made the right calls in the finale”, said sports director Marc Reef. “Of course, it all happens in split seconds. Sadly, Olav never got to launch his sprint in the end. That’s disappointing, especially because we put a lot of energy into this stage. The result may not show it, but the way we raced and how the riders felt throughout the day gives us confidence moving forward.”