"I have already proven that I can help Mathieu van der Poel" - Gianni Vermeersch boosts Tour de France hopes with victory at Dwars door het Hageland
Cycling
Taking a thrilling victory on the gravel and cobbles of the edition of 2024 Dwars door het Hageland, Gianni Vermeersch has done his hopes of gaining selection for Alpecin-Deceuninck's Tour de France lineup no harm at all.
“I actually had little to no trouble. Only when I had to sprint flat out uphill did I feel that something was still there. But it was a stroke of luck," said Vermeersch in a post-race interview with Wielerflits, having taken the win ahead of Jonas Abrahamsen and Harthijs De Vries. “Abrahamsen did not participate, so that was a bit difficult. He is in very good shape. Especially when he launched another attack."
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In the end though, despite Abrahamsen's best attempts at mind games, Vermeersch would not be denied, powering to the win in a thrilling finale. "I had to go very deep to be able to participate. From that point on I started to have doubts a bit and I didn't want to continue riding at full speed. Fortunately, de Vries came back, so I was able to play a bit of poker in the last kilometre. That was easy," he smiles. “I have already been second here once and third twice, but that victory was still missing. I'm very happy that it worked today."
As mentioned, with the Tour de France at the end of the month, the Tour de France is on the horizon so this was the perfect reminder of Vermeersch's capabilities for the Alpecin-Deceuninck bosses. "Does this mean I secure my Tour selection? I do not know. I have proven that the condition is good, but to prove yourself here for the Tour selection… I don't know if this is enough. We'll see. Next week the Tour of Belgium will also be important,” he assesses. "I have already proven that I can help Mathieu van der Poel a little. And at the beginning of the sprint train I can also do my thing every now and then. But of course it is up to the team to plan that.”
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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Gianni Vermeersch wins in Belgium 🏆 The belgian wins Dwars door het Hageland after a tough battle with Jonas Abrahamsen 💥 #cycling #roadcycling #sprintfinish
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