"Today was a good training session": Daan Hoole enjoyed his audacious solo attack in Paris-Nice
Cycling
The second stage of this year's Paris-Nice had "sprint finish" written all over it. Among a mix of hilly and mountain stages, the Monday's transfer was the only opportunity offered by organizers to true sprinters, and Max Kanter (XDS Astana) emerged victorious in Montargis. But one man - Daan Hoole - dared to dream with an attack from far out, hoping to expose the limited support most teams dedicated to their sprinters, if they brought any at all.
The Decathlon CMA CGM rider took off with over 20 kilometers to go as peloton left the suburbs of Paris, and was only caught will about 750 meters to go by the last few domestiques left in peloton.
"My attack certainly wasn't planned, but Cees Bol (Decathlon's sprinter, ed.) crashed. Mark (team director Mark Renshaw) then asked from the team car if I wanted to sprint or save my legs for tomorrow. I'm not a sprinter, so I decided to attack, hoping to surprise the sprinters," Hoole told about the origins of his heroic effort at Eurosport microphone afterwards.
At one point, Hoole's lead grew to half a minute. "You know that once you've built up a lead, they have to ride really hard in the peloton to catch you back. It's a shame I just missed out on the win, but it was a good effort. It's fun to race on adrenaline in a final like this."
Did the 27-year-old time trialist actually think about victory along the way? "I tried to believe in it, but it's difficult. You know a peloton like that is coming at you really hard in the final, once the lead-out riders are hitting full throttle. You try to believe in it, of course. It's just a matter of riding as hard as you can and not looking back."
Hoole was consequently selected for the Combativeness Award following his solo ride.
Team time trial will be decisive
However the Dutch champion already has Tuesday's team time trial in mind. Team leader Nicolas Prodhomme will rely on Hoole among others to protect his GC bid with view to the weekend: "It's a very important day for the team. We've practiced a lot for it during our training camps and also last week at the Paul Ricard circuit. We're looking forward to it. Today was a good training session," he concludes.
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.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
- I'm picking .... .... Never mind 🫥flyer07-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment