"The last lap was much more intense than I expected" - Jasper Philipsen powers to 13th win of the season at Gooikse Pijl

Jasper Philipsen has taken his 13th victory of 2023 at the Gooikse Pijl, narrowly taking the win ahead of fierce competition from Olav Kooij and Dylan Groenewegen.

"The last lap was much more intense than I expected," the Belgian of Alpecin-Deceuninck revealed in his post-stage interview following the race, referencing the intense pace set by Lotto Dstny. "Something still had to be straightened out before we could sprint. That was because their sprinter was out. That's why they tried it that way."

With Caleb Ewan out of the running, Lotto Dstny were hoping to ensure all the remainder of the sprinters joined him but that was not the case. "At the same time, we have also allowed ourselves to be surprised. In the end we had to play all or nothing and I went quite deep. It really felt like I had to sprint twice, especially since I hadn't really recovered from that first effort," recaps Philipsen.

"I tried to take advantage of Dylan's slipstream for a while, but perhaps not for long enough," he concludes. "It put me in the lead quite quickly. I felt like the best was over for me, so I expected someone to rush past me. Luckily I was able to finish it."