"Right now it hurts" - Lennert van Eetvelt struggles to find joy in narrow 2nd behind Primoz Roglic on stage 4 of the 2024 Vuelta a Espana

Lennert van Eetvelt was one of the most impressive performers on stage 4 of the 2024 Vuelta a Espana. Having talked a big game pre-Grand Tour, the Lotto Dstny proved himself a real general classification contender on the brutally steep slopes of the final climb.

Sadly for the young Belgian however, his effort weren't quite rewarded with a stage win as he was edged out at the very last the experienced and crafty Primoz Roglic. Such a narrow defeat would hurt at the best of times but for Van Eetvelt, this feeling was made even worse as he looked to begin celebrating before the line, only to then bring his raised arm thumping back down onto his bars in anger as Roglic pinched his pocket.

As such, Van Eetvelt struggles to find the joy in the result despite his very impressive performance. "I can be very happy with the condition and how the race went. If I had been beaten in a different way, it would have been a very good result, but right now it hurts a bit," he reflects in conversation with Eurosport post-stage. "Maybe I will think differently about it in a few days."

Despite the presence of the likes of Roglic, Sepp Kuss, Joao Almeida, Adam Yates and others, Van Eetvelt was very vocal ahead of the Vuelta a Espana about his general classification goals and this strong showing is the clearest sign yet that the Belgian has the capabilities to challenge at the top of the GC standings. "I am here for the classification," he insists again. "Today is a nice confirmation, also in terms of form. This performance gives me and the team a lot of confidence to go for it in this Vuelta."

As a result, Van Eetvelt is now sitting 5th overall in the general classification, 41 seconds down on Roglic overall but just 3 seconds off Antonio Tiberi in the fight for the White Jersey.