Groupama-FDJ may not have secured a victory at Dwars door Vlaanderen, but a podium finish for Stefan Küng was something to celebrate on Wednesday. The Swiss rider made the most of his good fortune in staying ahead of a major crash, making a move into a decisive breakaway and battling numbers against Visma-Lease a Bike.
In the end, he finished behind Jonas Abrahamsen (Uno-X Mobility) for third but managed to grab the final spot on the podium ahead of Visma-Lease a Bike’s Tiesj Benoot, who had helped his teammate Matteo Jorgenson into the final break for the victory.
“I think second place would have been the maximum result because Visma had the numbers and they played it well,” Küng said.
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“I was probably the strongest apart from them but it was impossible for me to win this race. Both Jorgenson and Benoot are really strong riders and everyone else was looking at me because they were on the limit.”
Visma-Lease-a-Bike took over as a mass of yellow at the front of the peloton heading over the Berg Ten Houte with under 75km to go. Magnus Sheffield (Ineos Grenadiers) attacked but Küng was one of the first lead riders to react and along with Jorgenson and Mads Pedersen (Lidl-Trek) the threat was shut down.
Then more attacks followed until all momentum changed with the big crash on the descent leading to the Kanarieberg, with 65km to go.
“It was a bit hectic at that moment, I just moved up in the group, and right after I heard the crash behind me,” Küng said. “I think everyone was a bit shocked at first, then Matteo Jorgenson re-opened the race in the Kanarieberg.”
The Groupama-FDJ rider found himself in a front selection, which soon expanded from five riders to 11. It was then Küng on the offensive on a cobbled section with 30km to go, which began to reduce the front group. Then, with 7km to go, Jorgenson put in a surprise attack that left Küng taking turns with Abrahamsen, Dries De Bondt (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale) and Josh Tarling (Ineos Grenadiers), while Benoot remained in their slipstream.
“They had the numbers, and they played it well. There also wasn’t a hard enough climb in the final to make a difference. When there are two against one, and the others are just looking at me because they’re on the limit, then it’s really difficult,” Küng added.
Now in his sixth campaign for Groupama-FDJ, Küng had set his sights on the Classics this spring as a buildup to the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. He finished in the top 10 of both those Monuments in the last two years, including third at Paris-Roubaix in 2022. With top 20s at E3 Saxo Classic and Gent-Wevelgem serving as appetizers for a third at Dwars door Vlaanderen, the versatile 30-year-old was primed for Ronde this Sunday.
“The cobbled climbs usually suit me better, and I feel I’m getting better from race to race. Today was the best I’ve felt in all the these races. That’s a positive sign for the Tour of Flanders,” Küng said.
“I hope I can be there with a strong team. We have three cards to play: Laurence Pithie, Valentin Madouas and me. We have to try to do something.”
The team confirmed this podium finish as being the biggest result of the spring races so far, even though Lenny Martinez had won two one-day races, Classic Var and Trofeo Laigueglia, and Laurence Pithie took the title at Cadel Evan Great Ocean Road Race.
“We finally have the result that we were missing,” said Frédéric Guesdon, assistant sports director, in a team statement after the race. “Until then, we were up there in all the races, but it had not paid off. Today, there is the podium and the way to take it, so that’s good. This bodes well for Sunday. Taking third in Dwars door Vlaanderen gives morale to everyone. The goals are clear for Sunday, and we will get to the Ronde with a lot of motivation.”
