"We wanted to open the race early like last year" - Visma | Lease a Bike sports director confirms that Omloop Het Nieuwsblad went according to their plan

It was not really a surprise to see Visma | Lease a Bike gaining an upper hand over the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. Yet it was still an impressive feat of strength when the Dutch team exploded the race before the live broadcast even started. And even when things weren't always coming their way in the final kilometers, the yellow jersey went on an offensive, to eventually create a winning move for Jan Tratnik, while Wout Van Aert crossed the line in third.

"There was a lot of wind and after 50 kilometers there were many areas where things could go happen. We were planning to do that anyway and on the 2nd or 3rd attempt there was a nice crack. The five of us were in the first group. From then on it never stopped. With this wind, everyone knew that it could be a war of attrition. And with our strong team we were able to tackle it in no time."

"We wanted to open the race early like last year at the Lange Munte," sports director Arthur van Dongen explained the tactical plan to Sporza afterwards. "This way, the other favorites also had to ride with their noses in the wind. This way we were immediately able to thin out the group significantly."

After that, the men in yellow were able to thin out the leading group to just six men, where half of them were from the Dutch team. Unluckily, the bunch behind them worked well enough to close the gap, meaning it was Matteo Jorgenson's time to strike. "Jorgenson's attack was according to our plan, but it is not the case that we have everything in our hands. We do not determine what the opposition does."