"Everyone saw what I was trying to do..." - Thymen Arensman disappointed not to take Tour of the Alps win; Dati talks of an 'unforgettable' day

The opening stage of the Tour of the Alps saw a bunch sprint decide the winner, however it was not without its traps on the way. It was a calm day in the bunch, until the final 5 kilometers where INEOS Grenadiers forced the pace and tried to surprise.

However Thymen Arensman's attack, which came on the descent of a small uphill ramp inside the final 5 kilometers of the stage, came to and end with a mere 300 meters to go. The Dutchman almost pulled off a stupendous move, but when Team UKYO picked up the pace in the peloton, they put Tommaso Dati in a perfect position, and the 23-year old delivered with a second 2.1 win in the space of two months - a strong results sheet for a continental-level rider in the European calendar.

"I was so excited to start this Tour of the Alps and to do it this way... it's a dream," the Italian fast man said in a post-race interview. "We were expecting an attack on this final climb. And indeed, we saw several attacks".

The Japanese-Italian team managed to deliver him so well that in the final sprint, he had the legs to outsprint Tom Pidcock. "My goal was to follow them as much as possible. I also tried to conserve as much energy as possible for the final sprint, it's fantastic. Tomorrow (where he will be the race leader, ed.) will be an unforgettable day".

Arensman on the other hand, a rider who typically struggles in the beginning of stage-races, was quite disappointed in the finale, where he was close to taking his first win of the season. There was nothing to hide, as INEOS' plan was quite clear, and almost perfect.

"The finale? I think everyone saw what I was trying to do," the two-time Tour de France stage winner last summer told L'Équipe. "We failed, but we'll keep pushing. Today, we tried to create something, we really wanted this victory. We'll continue like this every day!"