"A lot of drinks and ice" – Luke Lamperti stays cool on roasting opener of Czech Tour 2025 to make history with stage 1 win

Luke Lamperti has made a scorching return to winning ways this Thursday afternoon, sprinting to a commanding victory on stage 1 of the 2025 Czech Tour after a textbook team performance from Soudal - Quick-Step. The American’s post-race reflection pointed to just how tough the conditions were – and just how dialled in the team had to be to deliver him to the line.

“It’s nice to get the win after all the work the team did today and I’m happy I could get my first victory of the year here, in a race where I have some nice memories,” Lamperti said in quotes collected from a post-stage press release on the Soudal - Quick-Step team's official website. “It was really warm all day, but we managed to overcome it with a lot of drinks and ice.”

The 197km stage served up a classic early break scenario, with six riders going clear before being steadily reeled in. A brief solo flourish from Michiel van Vliet and a late surge by Iñigo Elosegui injected some final-hour tension, but Soudal - Quick-Step kept things under control – even as the heat and repeated accelerations began to split the bunch in the final kilometres. “The guys were just fantastic,” Lamperti praised. “They left me in a position from where I couldn’t miss.”

And miss he didn’t. Opening up his sprint first, Lamperti had an extra gear no one could match, taking the win ahead of Davide Donati with authority. The result not only opens Lamperti’s account for the season, but also makes him the first non-European rider to win multiple stages at the Czech Tour – a stat that speaks to both his progression and comfort at this event. “It feels good to be on the top step of the podium and on Saturday we’ll try to go for another sprint,” he added. “But until then, we will do our best to support William Junior Lecerf.”

With one stage win in the bag, form clearly peaking, and the team firing around him, Lamperti’s Czech campaign is already off to a hot start – literally and figuratively.