"If the team is riding like this, I should be the strongest rider!" - Pascal Ackermann pays back Israel - Premier Tech's hard work with first win in 2 years in Dunkerque

For the first time, ahead of the traditional 4 Jours du Dunkerque, race organisers put together a Classic Dunkerque on the eve of the race. The winner of the inaugural event in 2025 this Tuesday afternoon was former German national champion Pascal Ackermann.

With a bunch sprint ultimately deciding the day, Ackerman denied the likes of Biniam Girmay and Alberto Dainese on his way to reaching the finishing line first. Afterwards, the German powerhouse paid tribute to the work done by his Israel - Premier Tech teammates. “It was an amazing team performance today,” Ackermann says in a press release on his team's official website. “Yesterday I saw the startlist and I thought that I should be able to win today. Today the team rode so strongly from the front and I was like: ‘if the team is riding like this, I should be the strongest rider!’

“I felt super good on the climbs and the team gave me all the trust, especially after my injuries in the last few weeks and months. I’m super happy to finish it off," Ackermann added. “I didn’t win any races I the last two years. I had a lot of injuries, also in the last weeks, and some bad times. But this week started super nice – my brother and his wife have had two twins, so congratulations to them – and I think that was good motivation for me to restart my cycling life.”