Toon Aerts takes third in bunch sprint in flat finish into Skive
Australian Jensen Plowright (right) of Alpecin-Premier Tech thought he'd won but the stage was later awarded to Wout van Aert, pictured in the blue leader's jersey(Image credit: Getty Images)
Jensen Plowright (Alpecin-Premier Tech) appeared to have edged race leader Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) in a narrow victory on stage 2 of the Tour of Denmark, but after a closer look at the photo finish, the Belgian rider was confirmed to have crossed the line by a sliver of time versus the Australian.
Third place went to Toon Aerts (Lotto-Intermarché) no matter the outcome of the winner.
The stage seemed to be a success for Alpecin-Premier Tech, who worked to control the stage finale after the peloton reeled in the day's early breakaway with 7.5km to go and then swatted down several late attacks.
After Van Aert opened the sprint but couldn't get separation, Plowright came in late on his left and appeared to snatch the stage win. However, a closer look at the bike throws by both riders showed Van Aert first to cross the line, holding off Plowright, and giving the race leader back-to-back stage wins.
The time bonus extended Van Aert's lead in the overall classification to 14 seconds over Unibet's Lukáš Kubiš, with Henrik Pedersen (Uno-X Mobility) third at 16 seconds.
"It was actually super crazy and super fast. Lovely circuit, but super hectic on the way down. I got a really nice run to the finish in the last 200 [metres]," Plowright said after the finish, but before the review of the photo finish moved him to second.
The reversal by race officials confirmed what Van Aert saw after the finish in a timing photo.
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“This is a first for me,” Van Aert told VTM Nieuws and Sporza at the finish. “The feeling was that Jensen was going to pass me, but he was so sure of himself that I thought it had already been checked. Only when I saw the photo did I start to have doubts. In the end, the coin landed in my favor. A very special experience.”
Friday's stage 3 is the queen stage of the five-day race, with four categorised climbs across 202.9km from Fredericia to Vejle.
Laura Weislo is a Cyclingnews veteran of 20 years. Having joined in 2006, Laura extensively covered the Operacion Puerto doping scandal, the years-long conflict between the UCI and the Tour de France organisers ASO over the creation of the WorldTour, and the downfall of Lance Armstrong and his lifetime ban for doping. As Managing Editor, Laura coordinates coverage for North American events and global news.
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