“I suffered very much. It was really tough”, Van Aert said. “I think I had to pay for the other boys having a bit more experience in competing in E-races than me. I got already dropped from the start and I tried to ride my own pace as much as possible. By not being in the front of the race from the start you lose a lot of strength, because being in someone’s wheel also has its advantages here. Halfway through the race I refound my legs and energy a bit and I caught up with some of the riders in front. It was a lot of fun to do and certainly a pleasant experience.”

Teunissen concurred with his teammate’s explanation. “It is a very nice initiative and certainly a nice addition. As presumed, it was a a very tough race. In here it is mainly a matter of delivering a lot of power and pedaling high wattages. That is something that doesn’t suit me too well compared to the pure specialists. In any case, it was a nice change for us.”