The Mémorial Frank Vandenbroucke, as the race is also called, started around noon in rainy conditions. After a leading group of seven riders finally saw their chance after dozens of kilometres, the peloton also picked up speed. Timo Roosen and Nathan Van Hooydonck had to let go of the bunch after earlier efforts. With a reduced number of riders, the peloton started to hunt for the escapees.

After all escapees had been caught, the riders prepared for the treacherous final kilometre, including a cobbled climb. It was former Team Jumbo-Visma rider Danny van Poppel who won the race.

Mike Teunissen spoke of a very tough race. Like many, he was struggling with the aftermath of Paris-Roubaix. “I had some problems with my toes and my knee after a crash last Sunday. Unfortunately, Nathan and Timo had to let the peloton go. For the rest, it was mainly a matter of catching up. A race like last Sunday’s race is not easy.”

“Nevertheless, we gave everything again today. In the end we tried to prepare the sprint for Dylan. Unfortunately, others were stronger today. It is now important to recover from these races. My last race of this season awaits on Sunday with Paris-Tours.”

Sports director Frans Maassen could not blame his riders. “The will was definitely there, but the legs didn’t cooperate today. We are not looking for excuses, but it isn’t easy to recover from the grueling previous race in a day and a half. For some guys, finishing today was the maximum they could do. We will take this baggage to the next race. I am proud that the guys gave their all today. Motivation wasn’t the issue here.”