Early on the first climb of the day, three riders broke away, but due to the high pace in the peloton, the breakaway never gained much of a gap. The escapees were eventually reeled in on the final climb by the bunch, where the young squad of Team Visma | Lease a Bike was still well represented and firmly positioned near the front.

On the last climb of the day, several riders were quickly dropped, but Nordhagen managed to hold his place near the front. The 20-year-old Norwegian stayed with the group of favorites for a long time but had to let go with seven kilometers to go as the group—by then already significantly reduced—pushed on. Nordhagen ultimately finished in an impressive eighth place.

“We’ve achieved a really strong result", said sports director Maarten Wynants. “Of course, we were hoping Jørgen would deliver a good performance today, but finishing eighth in such a strong field is really impressive—especially considering he wasn’t feeling great the past few days. It’s truly a result to be proud of.”

Tomorrow, the riders face one last challenge with an individual time trial, but Wynants is already very pleased with what the team has achieved so far. “With this very young squad, we managed to win a stage and showed ourselves every day. It’s great to see how well the guys are developing and making their mark in the WorldTour. This group definitely has a lot of potential.”