The fourth stage of the ZLM Tour started and finished in Roosendaal. The day did not start well for Kooij, who crashed before the official start. "I fell on my shoulder, but luckily I only got a few abrasions”, the 21-year-old rider from the Dutch town of Numansdorp said.

A group of eight riders formed the early breakaway. Team Jumbo-Visma controlled the pace of the peloton on behalf of race leader Kooij. With about a hundred kilometres to go, the race broke open. A strong side wind on the Oesterdam caused the peloton to split. After several kilometres of echelons, the peloton finally came together.

"There was a lot of wind again, which is typical for a stage in the ZLM Tour”, Kooij said. "The peloton broke up for a while, but we knew it was impossible to create a decisive breakaway. Only Tosh (Van der Sande) and I were in the front. So it was good for us that everything came together again. Then we decided to put everything into the bunch sprint.”

After the breakaway, a new lead group emerged. Once again, the yellow and black formation kept the escape within reach. Ultimately, Kooij's lead-out proved too far away in the final kilometres to challenge for the day's win. "On courses like this, everyone rides close together. You know it can be over in a split second. Unfortunately, that was the case for us today. We were always in front on the local laps. We just lost too many positions in the crucial corners. I was too far behind, which prevented me from sprinting”, Kooij said.

Kooij will start the fourth and final stage of the ZLM Tour as the general classification leader. Tim van Dijke is still in sixth place. The final stage to and from Oosterhout is scheduled for Sunday.