"It was them against us, but they won" - Attacking Mads Pedersen unable to add European title to palmares in Limburg
Cycling
A world champion back in 2019, Mads Pedersen was looking to add a European road race title to his palmares in Limburg on Sunday afternoon. Despite a bright and attacking display however, the Dane eventually had to settle for 6th at the line.
"We did everything we could to make the race as hard as possible and to make it difficult for the sprinters. But nowadays they are so good, all of them," assesses the 28-year-old in his post-race interview afterwards. "I ended up finishing well and that's something I'm happy about. It was a messy sprint, but all in all we can be satisfied with the course of the race."
With 50km to go, Pedersen was part of a breakaway that also included the likes of defending European champion Christophe Laporte and reigning world champion, Mathieu van der Poel. Despite some good cohesion among the attackers, the peloton simply denied any real leeway and heading into the final 20km, Pedersen was back in the peloton, refocusing for the final sprint.
"We had a strong group and threw ourselves completely, but we knew that Belgium and Italy would close the gap if they didn't have anyone with them," Pedersen concludes, seemingly without regret about the wasted effort on the attack. "It was them against us, but they won."
In the end, it was joy for Belgium and for Tim Merlier in Limburg as the Soudal - Quick-Step sprinter took the win ahead of Olav Kooij and Madis Mihkels.
Read also
Results | 2024 Men's Elite European Championship Road Race:
| 1 | Merlier Tim | Belgium | 250 | 04:37:09 |
| 2 | Kooij Olav | Netherlands | 200 | + 00 |
| 3 | Mihkels Madis | Estonia | 150 | + 00 |
| 4 | Philipsen Jasper | Belgium | 125 | + 00 |
| 5 | Kristoff Alexander | Norway | 100 | + 00 |
| 6 | Pedersen Mads | Denmark | 90 | + 00 |
| 7 | Bittner Pavel | Czechia | 80 | + 00 |
| 8 | Aniolkowski Stanislaw | Poland | 70 | + 00 |
| 9 | Laporte Christophe | France | 60 | + 00 |
| 10 | Kirsch Alex | Luxembourg | 50 | + 00 |
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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Tim Merlier is the new European Champion! 🚀 #EuroRoad24 firstcycling.com/race.php?r=401…
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