Olav Kooij 8th at Milano-Sanremo, far from the best: "The dynamics need to be different for me to contend for the victory"
Cycling
Olav Kooij came to Milano-Sanremo with the hope of potentially sprinting for a Monument victory, however that dream was shattered on Cipressa when the trio of favourites took off to be never caught again. Behind, the groups including Kooij eventually came together and the Visma | Lease a Bike sprinter secured an 8th position for his team.
"In races like these, the dynamics need to be different for me to contend for the victory. When Pogacar’s team upped the pace on the Cipressa, I knew what was coming. In the end, I secured a strong finish, but I definitely want to return for more in the future. It was a tough race, both because of the distance and the high pace in the final. The team did an excellent job keeping me at the front and guiding me over the climbs," Kooij said in a press release.
"This may not be the result we came for, but given how the race unfolded, we have to be satisfied with it," said sports director Maarten Wynants. "We can be proud of how we presented ourselves today. We always race to win, but in the finale, it became clear that wasn’t an option anymore."
"After that, we maximized our result, and for now, we should be satisfied with that. We handled things better than last year, and this performance offers Olav a lot of perspective. We were hoping for a bunch sprint for victory, but today, three riders were clearly stronger than the rest. At least we have no regrets about how we raced."
Results of 2025 Milano-Sanremo:
| Position | Rider | Team | Time |
| 01 | van der Poel Mathieu | Alpecin-Deceuninck | 06:22:53 |
| 02 | Ganna Filippo | INEOS Grenadiers | + 00 |
| 03 | Pogacar Tadej | UAE Team Emirates-XRG | + 00 |
| 04 | Matthews Michael | Team Jayco-AlUla | + 43 |
| 05 | Groves Kaden | Alpecin-Deceuninck | + 43 |
| 06 | Cort Magnus | Uno-X Mobility | + 43 |
| 07 | Pedersen Mads | Lidl-Trek | + 43 |
| 08 | Kooij Olav | Team Visma | Lease a Bike | + 43 |
| 09 | Trentin Matteo | Tudor Pro Cycling Team | + 43 |
| 10 | Wright Fred | Bahrain Victorious | + 43 |
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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