"He was probably the best man in the race" - Mike Teunissen applauds new European Champion Christophe Laporte

Mike Teunissen showed up frequently in the final of the European Championships in Drenthe. Ultimately, the Dutchman finished in fifth place, while he saw his teammate Olav Kooij finish third. Still, there were mixed feelings afterwards.

"I think we rode a very good race," Teunissen begins. "We actually did everything very well. Laporte was very strong. But normally you will get it back if you keep riding behind with eight men. But he had less wind than us, so to speak."

National coach Koos Moerenhout said before the start that the Netherlands would race defensively, but we still saw Teunissen attack in the final. "That was for the TV," the Intermarché-Circus-Wanty rider joked. "No, look. At one point we were missing a few riders. If you wait and you are locked in, ten people can ride away and you have to chase after them. That's why I thought: I'll just go myself. It was a moment where it could happen. But I never really persevered, until the end with Olav there. Then it was full steam ahead."

Teunissen seemed to be at ease during the race and afterwards he confirmed that things did indeed go well. "We were actually a bit surprised when Laporte suddenly attacked. But we wanted to sprint with Olav. With two more Belgians and two Danes, I thought everything was under control. But we misjudged Christophe. Where did he get that from? Really nice. He was probably the best man in the race."