Jasper Philipsen thrives in brutal conditions as Classic Brugge-De Panne: "I don't think it was the best sprint, but I think everyone suffered"

Jasper Philipsen took an impressive victory in the Classic Brugge-De Panne, showing tremendous strength, carrying the weight of the race, breaking away and beating Olav Kooij and Yves Lampaert in the final sprint. It was his third triumph of the season.

"It was a good day, a very good day for the team, we were where we needed to be at all times and we were also able to control the finish," he told reporters in a post-race interview. Since early on Philipsen and Alpecin were present in the front echelons, however after a full day of all-out racing it was an attack that created the decisive split. In this scenario Philipsen showed to have great legs, responding and taking part in the winning four-rider group.

The strong wind and rain made it a horrible day out on the bike for everyne. "Yes, it was a classic Flanders time, a very hard race and I think we did very well with the team. There were two of us in the final group and, although there could have been more of us, we controlled everything perfectly," the Belgian describes.

He had tough competition still in the final sprint, but he managed to beat Olav Kooij to take a third World Tour win this spring. "I know Olav is very strong and I didn't know how much energy he had left in his legs after such a hard race. I felt the legs too, I don't think it was the best sprint, but I think everyone suffered," he concluded.