Edoardo Affini was the first rider to start for Team Jumbo-Visma. The Italian set a solid target time of 42:41 in the rain. As the day progressed, it became a little drier, and the pace picked up. Roglic started his race against the clock conservatively, but his intermediate times got faster and faster. In the final section, the three-time Vuelta winner made up many seconds on his closest rivals, and in the end, his time of 41:41 was good enough for sixth place.

"It was a good time trial”, Roglic said. "Usually, my start is a bit slower, and my finish is better. I would have signed up for this position beforehand. Remco is now slightly ahead of me and the Ineos guys, but we are getting closer. It will be an interesting few weeks. I'm looking forward to it.”

"The differences are minimal”, sports director Arthur van Dongen said. "The rules are entirely different after a week of racing, and this time trial has shown that. Primoz continued his excellent form on a course that was a little less suited to him than his rivals. He was particularly strong in the second part. We are delighted.”

Van Dongen knows that a lot of hard work lies ahead in the second and third weeks. "We're not at the halfway point yet. There is still a lot of climbing to do. The current game of seconds cannot be compared to the expected differences of minutes. Everyone is very close at the moment, and that's good for this race. We have also seen a strong Ineos. They can compete with Soudal-QuickStep and us. In any case, it's going to be a great battle.”