"When your own son is saying ‘Why didn’t you win?’ it hurts a little bit" - Emotional Edward Theuns breaks down in tears after first victory in four years

The finale of the 2025 Bredene Koksijde Classic was an incredibly exciting one as the breakaway and peloton were embroiled in a tug of war that lasted all the way to the last few pedal strokes. In the end, it was the breakaway who prevailed, as Lidl-Trek's Edward Theuns took held off the charging peloton's sprinters to take the 10th pro victory of his career.

Although it may be the 10th win of his career, for Theuns this victory marks the first chance he's had to cross the line with his arms aloft since a stage of the 2021 Tour de Hongrie, nearly four years ago. “It’s unbelievable. I haven’t won since my son was born and he asks me a lot of times when I come back from the race ‘Daddy, did you win?’ and it hurts,” a tearful and emotional Theuns reflected after the race. “I love to do the lead outs for Milan and that’s my place and he’s one of the best sprinters in the world, so it gives me a lot of satisfaction. But when your own son is saying ‘Why didn’t you win?’ it hurts a little bit."

“I told him last week it will come one day and today I had unbelievable legs, and I could win after a long time without a victory. It feels good. I really have to thank everybody who supported me, the whole team and especially my girlfriend and my son," he adds. "They are the world to me, and they always support me. It’s not always easy to live together with a cyclist, but moments like these make it worth it.”

As mentioned, the breakaway holding on was by no means certain, even in the last few hundred metres, making for a thrillingly exciting end to the day's action. "I started to rush a bit during the local laps because we rode like we had a 2-minute lead," Theuns analyses. "But the gap was small and I thought Florian Vermeersch or Alec Segaert would still attack. Then I still had Jakob Söderqvist, but I told him to go all out when the peloton closed in. I have to thank him for his work in the last kilometres."

In the actual sprint though, Theuns powered clear of all rivals. "The finish is a bit treacherous with that last corner. I didn't want to wait too long and get boxed in," he concludes. "My legs gave me confidence, I'm glad I could finish it."