Without the sick Julien Vermote, the peloton prepared for the longest stage of the Belgian stage race. Along the way the riders were presented with several short climbs, of which the cobbled Kerkstraat proved to be the most difficult. Team Visma | Lease a Bike rode attentively and was constantly at the front.

Although the peloton was split several times, everything came back together and a bunch sprint had to decide who would take the stage win. Kooij had to come a long way in the closing metres, but managed to finish second thanks to a powerful sprint. 

"It was a nervous final. We were in a good position, but because the last metres were downhill, we ended up in the so called washing machine. In the sprint I had to make up a few positions and in the end I didn't get beyond second place. That's certainly not bad, but let's hope we can continue the line this weekend and get a win in the final stage."