The riders covered 15.9 kilometres on a slightly undulating course in and around Saint-Quentin. Jos van Emden was the first Team Jumbo-Visma rider to leave the podium. The former Dutch time trial champion rode a solid lap, which resulted in the fastest provisional time and 13th place in the day's results.

Later Mick van Dijke started his time trial, one minute behind teammate Timo Roosen. Van Dijke was fast throughout. The 23-year-old rider from the Dutch town of Goes was sixth fastest at the halfway point and finished eighth.

Olav Kooij was the penultimate rider to start, as he was second in the standings. The young sprinter finished 16th, 41 seconds behind winner Benjamin Thomas. Sports director Frans Maassen was satisfied. "It is good that he was able to limit the damage. In ninth place, he is still in a good position. We'll see what happens. It was also good to see that Jos and Mick could prove themselves today."

"Of course, you expect more from a team like Jumbo-Visma in a time trial, but we can be happy with three riders in the top sixteen. Our main goal this week is to win the sprint stages with Olav, and our selection is geared towards that. We have already won the first stage, and there will be more opportunities in the coming days", Maassen concluded.

Photo: François LO PRESTI Région Hauts de France