Nys wins in Neerpelt
Veteran star out sprints Albert for the victory





Sven Nys completed his hat trick, winning the Soudal Grote Prijs in Neerpelt on Saturday for the third consecutive year. He outsprinted world champion Niels Albert for the win, with Klaas Vantornout finishing third, 25 seconds later.
Nys joined up with Rob Peeters and Tom Meeusen in the first of ten laps, and then soloed away on the second lap. Albert moved up to second on the third lap, but could not join Nys until the seventh lap, and they stayed together until the end, with the Belgian national champion outsprinting the world champion.
After finishing only 11th in his last race, Nys was not certain of his form. “But I felt immediately today that it was going well. Even when I rode my own tempo, the others couldn't follow me,” he said, according to sporza.be. “When Niels approached second by second, I slowed down a bit. because I knew I could win in the sprint.”
“Sven was better and deserved to win,” Albert admitted. “I missed my start and that is fatal on a course like this. Then when I got on Sven's wheel, I made a mistake in the sand. Maybe I missed some freshness in this competition.”
| 1 | Sven Nys (Bel) Landbouwkrediet-KDL | 0:56:41 |
| 2 | Niels Albert (Bel) BKCP - Powerplus | Row 1 - Cell 2 |
| 3 | Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Sunweb-Revor | 0:00:25 |
| 4 | Dieter Vanthourenhout (Bel) BKCP - Powerplus | 0:00:31 |
| 5 | Kevin Pauwels (Bel) Sunweb-Revor | 0:00:39 |
| 6 | Bart Wellens (Bel) Telenet - Fidea | Row 5 - Cell 2 |
| 7 | Bart Aernouts (Bel) AA Drinks-Leontien.nl Cycling Team | 0:01:14 |
| 8 | Tom Meeusen (Bel) Telenet - Fidea | 0:01:23 |
| 9 | Marcel Meisen (Ger) BKCP - Powerplus | 0:01:26 |
| 10 | Radomir Simunek (Cze) BKCP - Powerplus | Row 9 - Cell 2 |
| 11 | Rob Peeters (Bel) Telenet - Fidea | Row 10 - Cell 2 |
| 12 | Wietse Bosmans (Bel) BKCP - Powerplus | 0:01:43 |
| 13 | Gerben de Knegt (Ned) Orange Babies Cycling Team | 0:01:45 |
| 14 | Arnaud Jouffroy (Fra) Telenet - Fidea | 0:01:51 |
| 15 | Thijs Van Amerongen (Ned) AA-Drink | 0:01:56 |
| 16 | Jim Aernouts (Bel) Sunweb-Revor | 0:02:13 |
| 17 | Francis Mourey (Fra) FDJ-BigMat | 0:02:24 |
| 18 | Philipp Walsleben (Ger) BKCP - Powerplus | 0:02:53 |
| 19 | Vincent Baestaens (Bel) Landbouwkrediet-KDL | 0:03:00 |
| 20 | Joeri Adams (Bel) Telenet - Fidea | 0:03:09 |
| 21 | Thijs Al (Ned) Telenet-Fidea | 0:03:11 |
| 22 | Egoitz Murgoitio Rekalde (Spa) Grupo Hiremet Taldea | 0:03:59 |
| 23 | Martin Zlamalik (Cze) Landbouwkrediet-KDL | 0:04:12 |
| 24 | Aurilien Duval (Fra) UV Aube | 0:04:16 |
| 25 | Mariusz Gil (Pol) Baboco | 0:04:54 |
| 26 | Kenneth Van Compernolle | 0:05:29 |
| -3laps | Dries Pauwels (Bel) Melbotech Prorace CT | Row 26 - Cell 2 |
| -4laps | Tom Van Den Bosch (Bel) AA Drink-Leontien.nl | Row 27 - Cell 2 |
| -4laps | Kenneth Hansen (Den) Christina Watches-Onfone | Row 28 - Cell 2 |
| -4laps | Fabian Brzezinski (Ger) Saikls Crossteam | Row 29 - Cell 2 |
| -4laps | Jonathan Lastra (Spa) Grupo Hirumet Taldea | Row 30 - Cell 2 |
| -6laps | Maxim Panis (Bel) Baboco | Row 31 - Cell 2 |
| -6laps | Yannick Mayer (Ger) Team NSP-Ghost | Row 32 - Cell 2 |
| -6laps | Alexander Revell (NZl) Revolution Bicycles | Row 33 - Cell 2 |
The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox!
Latest on Cyclingnews
-
Giro d'Italia penalties, fines and yellow cards – All the punishments handed out at the 2026 race
Tracking the rule infringements and penalties accrued on the road from Bulgaria to Rome -
Netcompany Ineos say 'nothing has changed' in Egan Bernal's GC hunt at Giro d'Italia despite several setbacks in opening week
'Of course, we can't hide the gap, this is clear, but we have to keep our belief high' says DS Basso with Colombian 15th overall, 6:18 off the lead -
'Jai is a bit older, maybe also a bit wiser' – Red Bull try to maintain balance between former winner Hindley and unrestricted home star Pellizzari at Giro d'Italia
DS Pömer says stopping Italian from trying to follow Vingegaard on Blockhaus 'would have been a moment he would regret his entire life' -
'Tactically, he did it really well' - Jayco-AlUla cautiously optimistic for Ben O'Connor in Giro d'Italia after sound strategic performance on Blockhaus
Australian just 1:15 down on Jonas Vingegaard and seventh overall after first major summit finish




