Casper van Uden dedicates AlUla Tour victory to John Degenkolb: "We are therefore very grateful to him"

Casper van Uden had shown a few promising and strong performances last season, but he has had his breakthrough victory as a pro today at the AlUla Tour, beating Tim Merlier and Dylan Groenewegen in the first day of the race.

“I'm really happy. We secretly took it into account. That's why we went all out. It's great if it works out," van Uden admitted in a post-race interview. “It was really a big battle for the right positions. We had to make sure we were right at the front. The team did that very well. Sometimes I lost the boys for a moment, but luckily they managed to keep the peace. In the last kilometers I found the connection again and then we made another big move."

It was a pure bunch sprint day. The 22-year old Dutchman was an outsider for the result, but with strong competition his presence at the head of the peloton wasn't expected. In the final sprint he used UAE Team Emirates' leadout to his advantage, but surprisingly had the speed to hold off two of the most powerful sprinters in the peloton. he thanks John Degenkolb for the support in the leadout that led to his victory. “John is really a super guy. He is also someone who really wants to help. We are therefore very grateful to him. We love him. He is our racing father."

“I just wanted too much last year. As a result, I made some unnecessary mistakes and also crashed heavily a few times. I then started to doubt myself, but the team kept believing in me," he admits. "It's great for me to win, but also for everyone within the team. I can't thank them enough.” It will be a tough ask for him to defend his leader's jersey tomorrow at the Sharaan Nature Reserve due to the hilltop finish, but nevertheless his race will already be a success.