The peloton had anything but an easy day in the northwest of Belgium. There was a lot of wind and the speed was high in the 184 kilometres of today’s race. The seven riders who formed the breakaway were caught early on and a bunch sprint was unavoidable. Team Visma | Lease a Bike took the lead in the final part of the stage and made sure Kooij was well placed in the uphill finishing street in Knokke-Heist.

The 22-year-old rider then sprinted to third place behind winner Merlier and Philipsen. "That's unfortunate", says Kooij immediately after the finish. "We did well as a team, especially during the last local lap. As a result, I was well in front. I perhaps didn't quite have the confidence to take the initiative myself in the sprint. I waited a bit too long and then you end up third."

After yesterday's individual time trial, today’s bunch sprint was Kooij's first regular stage since his exit from the Giro d'Italia a month ago. A day after his stage victory, Kooij could not start in Italy due to illness. "Of course it takes some getting used to again now, but it went pretty well. It's not bad to come back with a third place. We can fight for stage wins every day if we continue this way”, the Dutchman of Team Visma | Lease a Bike concludes.