“I didn't do much wrong in the final" - Olav Kooij has to settle for 2nd at Classic Brugge-De Panne

After finishing a close second behind Jasper Philipsen at the Classic Brugge-de Panne, Jumbo-Visma's Olav Kooij was left wondering what could have been.

“If you don't win, there are plenty of other scenarios going through your head,” the 21-year-old Dutch sprinter reflected in a post race interview. “I didn't do much wrong in the final. Just before the first passage through De Moeren I had a puncture and thought my race was over. I was still able to return afterwards and from then on I was always good.”

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With the final, race deciding battle coming down to Kooij, Philipsen, Yves Lampaert and Lotto Dstny's Frederik Frison, Kooij fancied his chances. “I had the legs to survive the last blow. You could see that Jasper was very strong, I had the right wheel. I couldn't get over it in the sprint."

"I would have liked to win, but it does give confidence for the following races. It still sucks for a while. I rely on the fact that I rode a good race," Kooij concludes.

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