The third stage consisted of more than two hundred kilometres over hilly terrain. However, the last 50 kilometres were flat, after which the race ended in a bunch sprint. David Dekker did a good lead-out and put Kooij in first position. The nineteen-year-old rider held on for a long time, but in the end Gaviria was just a bit faster.

Frans Maassen was a proud sports director. “It was a long day with a great finish. It’s a shame Olav didn’t win, but we are still happy with second place. It was close at the end, but especially the way the young riders made the sprint happen is nice to see. David’s lead-out was classy and Jos, Christoph and Pascal did a good job in the run-up. Those guys are not all that used to it, but you can make steps by practicing it here. It resulted in us getting close to the victory.”

Kooij looked back with mixed feelings. “It’s a bit disappointing now, but I’m also satisfied. The second place is always a bit of a disappointment. It was a fast run-up to the local laps and it was important to be up front. We worked well as a team and it worked out perfectly. Then David and I stayed together and he made a perfect move in the final. That allowed me to start the sprint. In the end Gaviria caught up with me, but everything else went well. We hope to sprint again in the coming days and we are going to give it our best every day. Hopefully that will lead to a victory.”