A challenging stage awaited the peloton with two first-category climbs and an uphill finish. Four riders attacked early and built up a four-minute lead. The breakaway’s adventure ended just after reaching the summit of the first climb.

Remco Evenepoel was the first to attack on the final climb. The Belgian brought Mattias Skjelmose and Felix Gall, and Kelderman tried to join him. The Dutchman tried hard but was unable to make the connection.

He finished the day in seventh place, a few seconds behind stage winner Skjelmose. "It was a good day", Kelderman said. "After not having raced for three months, I’m happy with the feeling I got. I lacked the strength in the final, but fortunately, I could keep going. I hope I can keep it up in the coming stages."

Sports director Marc Reef was also pleased with Kelderman’s performance. "Wilco showed today that he can climb with the best. After his crash in Tirreno-Adriatico, he had a long rehabilitation period. The fact that he can compete like this in the first real strength test is undoubtedly satisfying. Wilco is in a good position now. He can look up from here."

Wout van Aert strengthened his lead in the points classification by taking the lead in the lone intermediate sprint. In the overall standings, he is now well ahead of his rivals. "I tried to help Wilco as much as I could, and I was able to take those points as well", Van Aert said. "The scenario for the next two days might not be much different. Because of the rain, there wasn’t much fun to be had."