When Quick Step's Kevin Seeldraeyers took over the best young rider classification in the Giro d'Italia on Tuesday, he won more than just the white jersey – he also won a fiancee. After the stage he made a public proposal to Ellen Joos, who accepted.
"I didn't know what happened. At seven in the morning I started receiving congratulatory text messages from friends. At the same time Kevin called to ask whether I had seen the newspaper," Joos told Sportwereld.be.
She was pleased by the form of the proposal, saying she found it "very original" and "typical of Kevin. I don't think any other rider would do it that way."
Seeldraeyers and Joos plan to visit a jeweller on Monday to pick out an engagement ring, and he plans to repeat the proposal "officially".
Meanwhile, the 22-year-old still has four more Giro stages to face. He was happy with his Blockhaus stage, even though second-ranked Francesco Masciarelli made up over two minutes on him.
"I handled the race as well as I could without panic, trying to leverage the advantage I have in the standings over Masciarelli," the Belgian said. "I think with him it's going to be a race to the very last stage to see who will win the white jersey.
"However, I'm quite satisfied. Today was another positive step towards the final finish line in Rome."