The opening stage of the Renewi Tour was won by Tim Merlier. In Breskens, the Soudal Quick-Step rider sprinted to his first stage victory and the leader's jersey after a day of echelon riding. Arnaud De Lie finished second and took six important bonus seconds.
This year’s first stage of the Renewi Tour is the only race day on Dutch soil. Between Terneuzen and Breskens, a flat 182-kilometer stage awaited, with just one major obstacle that could prevent a bunch sprint: naturally, the wind.
Before the Zeeland wind played a decisive role in the stage, an early breakaway went up the road. The group included Dutchman Jelte Krijnsen, as well as riders like Max Walker, Andreas Stokbro, Robert Stannard, Axandre Van Petegem, Siebe Deweirdt, and Milan Lanhove. Although their lead was never large, the seven riders up front managed to defend their advantage of between one and two minutes well. The peloton was not riding slowly.
With 110 kilometers to go, things stirred in the peloton. After a few failed echelon attempts, fourteen riders managed to bridge to the front group with 95 kilometers remaining. This group included strong riders and big names. Take note: Tibor Del Grosso, Frank van den Broek, Rui Oliveira, Paul Magnier, Gianni Vermeersch, Kasper Asgreen, Dries De Bondt, Rick Pluimers, and Mike Teunissen were all involved.
photo: Cor Vos
Interesting bonus seconds battle, echelon stays clear
A battle for bonus seconds, typical of Belgian and Dutch stage races, then unfolded. The advantage of the first echelon never exceeded a minute, while the peloton behind also struggled to close the gap easily.
With ten kilometers to go, the lead of the front group was still 20 seconds. Just prior to that, Rui Oliveira (+8 seconds) and Dries De Bondt (+7 seconds) had made a crucial move at the golden kilometer, which partly disrupted the collaboration up front.
Kooij crashes, Merlier wins
Everything came back together in the final five kilometers, and in Breskens the crowd witnessed the inevitable bunch sprint. The only question was: with or without Olav Kooij? The Dutchman had crashed five kilometers from the finish but showed himself again a kilometer out at the front of the peloton.
Kooij, however, would not contend for the win. In Zeeland on Wednesday, there was no beating Tim Merlier, who outpaced his rivals by half a bike length. Arnaud De Lie took second place and grabbed valuable bonus seconds.
Renewi Tour| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 03:40:05 | |
| 2 | " | |
| 3 | " | |
| 4 | " | |
| 5 | " | |
| 6 | " | |
| 7 | " | |
| 8 | " | |
| 9 | " | |
| 10 | " |
