"It’s not often you can execute a plan so precisely" - Tobias Lund Andresen over the moon with maiden World Tour win

Previously a stage winner at the Tour of Turkey, Tour of Denmark, Cro Race and the Surf Coast Race; Tobias Lund Andresen was already a quality sprinter. However today at the Tour Down Under the Danish sprinter has taken his palmarès up a notch by winning stage 1 of the Tour Down Under ahead of the two men that were rated the highest to win the stage.

It proves to be a very successful first sprint tryout for the 23-year old, one of Decathlon CMA CGM Team's new signings into this winter. Whilst the team recently received the bad news that Olav Kooij is ill and his season debut has had to be postponed indefinitely, Lund has stepped up to the spotlight.

"It feels amazing to win, I honestly can’t remember the last time I felt this way. It’s unbelievable. The bike is incredibly fast, and my teammates did an exceptional job today," he said in a post-race interview. The flat finale into Tanunda was very fast as the peloton entered the final kilometers fresh, and it was a matter of timing for the French team to hit the front at just the right moment.

"I truly enjoyed this finish. You could say it’s a bit crazy for a sprinter to tackle an arrival like this, but the preparation we did with our sports directors, Mark Renshaw and Luke Roberts, was perfect. It’s not often you can execute a plan so precisely, but today we managed to pull it off," he details.

With a strong leadout from Gudmestad, Andresen began his sprint from the front and had the perfect position to hold off Matthew Brennan and Sam Welsford, both men who had the most favouritism the stage. With this win, Andresen also jumps straight into the race lead, taking it from INEOS' Sam Watson.

"Tomorrow will be a different challenge, but winning the opening stage brings a massive boost of confidence to the entire team, especially to Nicolas Prodhomme and Callum Scotson, who are both in great shape," he concludes. "It is a true honor to wear the leader’s jersey in a World Tour race like this, and I hope we can keep it within the team."