In the openingstage of the Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, which immediately proved to be demanding, the Dutch squad quickly moved to the front of the race. In support of leader Jorgenson, who was making his return to the peloton today, Team Visma | Lease a Bike, together with the other general classification teams, took control of the bunch.

On the day’s decisive climb, the Côte de Rousset, the team made a strong impression. Thanks to the hard work of Bruno Armirail, the peloton was quickly reduced, with a small group heading towards the final kilometres. While Alex Baudin took the win from the early breakaway, Tulett sprinted to sixth place. Jorgenson finished in the group of favourites.

“I expected a bigger fight for the general classification,” Jorgenson reflected afterwards. “On the final climb, as a team we took control of the peloton well. In the closing kilometres it became hectic due to multiple attacks, but I had expected that. It was a good day to return to racing. I look back on today with a good feeling.”

Team director Maarten Wynants also shared his thoughts after the stage. “It was a very hard day. From the start, the road went uphill straight away and the pace was high. Today, it was to be expected that it would mainly be a day for the better climbers, and that is how it played out. As a team, we can look back on a good day.”