"Christophe and I agreed during the second local lap to open up the race," Van Aert explained after the finish. "I was really on my limit at that point. In the final local lap, we mainly wanted to secure the GC and, if possible, go for the stage win with Christophe. We had different options depending on who still had the best legs."

On the final climb, the plan briefly took a different turn. "I thought Christophe was still on my wheel, but through the radio I heard that I had created a gap. At that moment, I had to keep going and go for my own chance."

Van Aert looks back on his hat trick in Denmark with great satisfaction. "Winning three stages in a row is something I have never experienced before. It is a new experience and it's really cool. We are in a good position in the GC, but we still have competitors. We need to stay sharp for everything that comes our way in the next few days."

The queen stage was expected to be the toughest stage of this edition of the Tour of Denmark. With several short but steep climbs and a technical local circuit, the peloton faced a demanding challenge. Team Visma | Lease a Bike took control of the race early on and kept the breakaway within reach.

As the riders entered the local laps, the pace increased significantly. The repeated climbs put more and more pressure on the peloton, with the first gaps starting to appear, while the team remained well represented at the front of the race.

The rain also created dangerous conditions during the finale. An early major crash left the team unaffected, but shortly afterwards several riders from the team went down on the slippery roads. Fortunately, everyone was able to continue and the team remained fully in the race.

In the finale, the breakaway was caught and the attacks started to come one after another. Van Aert launched one of the decisive moves, after which Laporte bridged across to his teammate. The Frenchman then took over the pace at the front and pushed the speed higher, helping create a strong selection at the front of the race.

With ten kilometers remaining, a group of thirteen riders had a lead of around thirty seconds over the chasing groups. On the final climb, Van Aert launched his decisive attack. The Belgian held on to claim his third consecutive stage victory in Denmark. Laporte completed the strong team performance with a third-place finish in the stage. Thanks to this victory, Van Aert not only keeps the blue leader's jersey, but also retains the green points jersey.