🇦🇪 #UAETour Lennert Van Eetvelt finishes 3rd on a tough Jebel Jais! The winner is Ben O'Connor.
"I waited a bit too long" - Lennert van Eetvelt wins peloton sprint at Jebel Jais but sees Ben O'Connor ride away with
CyclingWednesday, 21 February 2024 at 16:09
Lennert van Eetvelt showed great climbing form at the Mallorca classics early in the year and he's bringing the same heat to the UAE Tour.
"Normally these are slightly easier days, but it was still stressful in the peloton. There were echelons and the peloton once broke in two. I was looking forward to the final climb all day and I immediately had the right feeling," the Belgian said in a press release. An outsider and with little team support in comparison to other leaders, his best option was to wait for a sprint.
Throughout most of the climb, the race was taking place according to this scenario, with UAE Team Emirates closely controlling all moves. "It was not a steep climb, but there was a lot of wind so I had to wait" However Ben O'Connnor spearheaded a destructive final attack from the GC group, which no-one could bridge across to.
Jay Vine also got a small gap, van Eetvelt behind was the fastest in the sprint but the victory was already ahead. "In the end I waited a bit too long, because I did win the sprint of the small group. I feel there was more in it, but I am looking forward to Sunday's stage." The 22-year old climbed to 13th in the overall classification, but will still have to put in a strong performance in Jebel Hafeet in order to get himself in the Top10.
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