Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) sprinted to his ninth victory of the season at the Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen, hitting the front in the final metres to shoot to victory in the closing charge.
The Italian left it late but timed his surge to the line perfectly at the end of the 180.2km race in Koolskamp, coming past Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco-AlUla) just before the finish to beat the Dutchman to the line.
Groenewegen had started the sprint after a strong closing leadout from his Jayco-AlUla team, who took charge heading into the final kilometre. It looked as though he was all set for his fourth win of the year, but he didn't quite have enough left in the tank to hold off Milan.
Behind the lead duo, European champion Tim Merlier (Soudal-QuickStep) came through on Milan's wheel. He didn't have the time or the speed to get past Milan or Groenewegen, however, and had to settle for the final spot on the podium.
"I'm really happy to be first. It's special," Milan said later. "The team managed the day really well. The speed was high in the first hour, and the final was pretty chaotic. It was difficult to organise a lead-out. Many sprinters wanted to be in the front, but we managed it really well, and I'm really happy for this result.
"It was pretty difficult to recover [from the Tour de France]. I was having not that bad Tour of Germany, but I was hoping it would go a bit better. I think my body wasn't recovered enough. Now, I've had some nice recovery and training, and I was pretty motivated to do these last races of the season, do some nice results, and have some fun."
The race for the final began 20km from the line, when the survivors from the early breakaway were finally brought back. Jensen Plowright (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Oliver Stockwell (Bahrain Victorious), Martijn Tusveld (Beat Cycling Club), and Gavin Hlady (EF Education-Aevolo) were the last men standing. However, the move didn't make it close to the finish, leaving it up to the sprint squads to contest the final lap around Koolskamp.
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Jelle Vermoote of Wagner Bazin WB and Gavin Hlady of EF Education - Aevolo lead the breakaway (Image credit: Getty Images)
Lidl-Trek, Soudal-QuickStep, and Visma-Lease a Bike controlled the run towards the finish for their sprinters, while at 12km, Joost Nat (Beat Cycling Club) made a brief attack to try and disrupt proceedings.
He'd be quickly brought back, though, leaving it up to the big sprint squads to lead the race towards the finish. It was Visma who took over in the final 3km, while Tudor Pro Cycling and Lotto were also among the contenders at 1.5km to go.
Jayco took over heading under the flamme rouge, leading out Groenewegen with a strong final surge. It wasn't to be for the Dutchman, however, with Milan sprinting past and sealing victory at the line.
The peloton rides on a lap around Koolskamp (Image credit: Getty Images)
Dani Ostanek is Senior News Writer at Cyclingnews, having joined in 2017 as a freelance contributor, later being hired full-time. Her favourite races include the Tour de France Femmes, Paris-Roubaix, Tro-Bro Léon, and cycling's fourth Grand Tour, the Volta a Portugal.
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