Remco Evenepoel (Deceuninck-QuickStep) secured overall victory at the Baloise Tour of Belgium, despite going down in a late crash as the sprinters fought for the stage victory.
Bryan Coquard (Vital Concept) won the sprint by taking a wide line as other sprinters clashed with each other.
Evenepoel rode the finish alone, with a hole in his shorts but a smile on his face, knowing he was to be crowned the overall winner. The 19-year-old revelation won stage 2 and then defended his lead in the final stages with strong support from Deceuninck-QuickStep.
Victor Campenaerts (Lotto Soudal) finished second overall at 52 seconds, with his teammate Tim Wellens third overall at 2:02 but Deceuninck-QuickStep won again, taking their 37th victory of the season.
“I’m obviously delighted to win. It’s an amazing feeling, it hasn’t sunk in yet,” Evenepoel said.
It was a little bit difficult with what happened in the final sprint. But that’s okay; it’s a huge relief to get over the finish and win, without any of teammates being harmed.
“I’m going to be the youngest winner of the Tour and that’s a great achievement, I’m thrilled. The team again did well to make sure nobody got away again on the final flat stage. I have to thank them for the work they did.
Brief Results
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bryan Coquard (Fra) Vital Concept-B&B Hotel | 3:17:15 |
| 2 | Pierre Barbier (Fra) Natura4Ever - Roubaix Lille Métropole | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
| 3 | Emīls Liepins (Lat) Wallonie-Bruxelles | Row 2 - Cell 2 |
| 4 | Tom Van Asbroeck (Bel) Israel Cycling Academy | Row 3 - Cell 2 |
| 5 | Toon Aerts (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions | Row 4 - Cell 2 |
| 6 | Jonas Rickaert (Bel) Corendon-Circus | Row 5 - Cell 2 |
| 7 | Gijs Van Hoecke (Bel) CCC Team | Row 6 - Cell 2 |
| 8 | Corné Van Kessel (Ned) Telenet Fidea Lions | Row 7 - Cell 2 |
| 9 | Davide Martinelli (Ita) Deceuninck-QuickStep | Row 8 - Cell 2 |
| 10 | Kevin Van Melsen (Bel) Wanty-Gobert | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
| # | Rider Name (Country) Team | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Remco Evenepoel (Bel) Deceuninck-QuickStep | 15:49:17 |
| 2 | Victor Campenaerts (Bel) Lotto Soudal | 0:00:52 |
| 3 | Tim Wellens (Bel) Lotto Soudal | 0:02:22 |
| 4 | Toon Aerts (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions | 0:02:28 |
| 5 | Andreas Lorentz Kron (Den) Riwal Readynez Cycling Team | 0:02:29 |
| 6 | Jasper Philipsen (Bel) UAE Team Emirates | Row 5 - Cell 2 |
| 7 | Bryan Coquard (Fra) Vital Concept-B&B Hotel | Row 6 - Cell 2 |
| 8 | Loïc Vliegen (Bel) Wanty-Gobert | 0:02:38 |
| 9 | Aimé De Gendt (Bel) Wanty - Gobert Cycling Team | 0:02:29 |
| 10 | Pieter Weening (Ned) Roompot-Charles | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
-
Lenny Martinez wins Japan Cup after breaking away solo on final climb
Alex Baudin sweeps up second spot ahead of Ion Izagirre -
Anna Henderson wins Tour of Guangxi claiming final Women's WorldTour race of season
British rider takes out two-way sprint ahead of Caroline Andersson -
‘I was just trying to think about what was on the line’ - Cameron Jones charges from wildcard entry to Life Time Grand Prix series winner
New Zealander clinched title with fifth place finish at Big Sugar Classic as he unseated three-time series champion Keegan Swenson in finale -
Sofia Gomez Villafañe wins abbreviated Big Sugar Classic and locks in overall women's title for Life Time Grand Prix
Lauren Stephens second, Stella Hobbs third in large group finish for elite women in Bentonville
