Huub Artz powers to victory ahead of Dylan van Baarle at Dutch men's national time trial championships

Huub Artz (Lotto Intermarché) secured his first elite national title in the individual time trial at the Dutch Road Championships on Wednesday.

Under scorching temperatures, Artz crossed the finish line with the fastest time of the day, 40:29.26, beating runner-up Dylan van Baarle (Soudal-QuickStep) by 31 seconds and third-placed Sjoerd Bax (Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling) by 58 seconds in Laren.

The race was shifted to a later afternoon to avoid the alarmingly warm mid-afternoon temperatures, which reached 35°C in Laren, in the Achterhoek region of eastern Netherlands.

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Many federations across Europe took safety precautions by adding shaded areas, air-conditioned trucks for changing, and even sprinkler systems.

The elite men's 31 starters were divided into two waves during the time trial as they tackled two large loops totalling 35.8km.

Posting the fastest times at all five checkpoints, Thijs Woggers (WV de Kannibaal) set the opening benchmark with a time of 42:58.56.

Maarten van de Berg (Awv de Zqaluwen) was the first rider to knock him out of the hotseat, finishing five seconds faster, with a time of 42:53.50.

From there, the times kept coming in faster and faster until Artz crossed the line with the fastest time of the day at 40:29.26 to secure the national title.

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