"You can always rely on him": Tom Dumoulin praises the best Dutch finisher in the elite race

In absence of Mathieu van der Poel, the Dutch elite men were given a free role to use any means available to reach a satisfying result. For Bauke Mollema, this was a great platform to prove his qualities after a lacking season. While young teammate Menno Huising presented himself in the breakaway, the 38-year-old sticked around with the peloton for as long as possible before Tadej Pogacar launched his attack on Mount Kigali and blew the main group into pieces.

Mollema was suddenly quite off the front, but eventually caught up with the group of Michael Storer and Marc Hirschi to finish in 21st place in a last group that wouldn't be withdrawn from the race.

"Wow, it was a super tough race today," Mollema told NOS. "And especially after that big climb. I only rejoined before the Mur de Kigali, but by then I was pretty much out of it. At this altitude, you recover so, so poorly. I think it was a fair race. Pogacar was the best, but behind him, the gap is also huge."

Mollema himself was able to sweep up a few riders in the final fifty kilometers. Ultimately, it wasn't enough for a top-twenty finish. "I was in a really good group in the last fifty kilometers; we were even able to catch a few people. I'd hoped for something better beforehand, but my legs did the talking. In the end, I still tried to enjoy myself a bit."

Tom Dumoulin was 4th at the World Championships in 2018. Mollema himself was aiming for a top-ten finish at the World Championships, but admitted after the finish that "he was already past his prime" after Mount Kigali. The Dutchman was slightly disappointed, but according to Dumoulin, Mollema needn't be. "Yes, he just missed out, but is it okay?"

"He's just such a top-notch rider. He's been around for so many years. It's just amazing that you can always rely on Bauke. You know: he's going to make it to the final. And he did it again," he continues, highlighting his compatriot's 11th and 12th places at the World Championships in the past.

"This year, things haven't been going well for him; he hasn't reached his usual level. But I spoke to him in June, and he already said then: I'm going to give it my all at the World Championships. He's truly outstanding."

Thymen Arensman started the race as a co-leader of the Netherlands, next to Mollema, but ultimately didn't finish the race. The 25-year-old stayed with Mollema for a long time, but ultimately lost touch with less than 30 kilometers to go and became the final rider to not reach the finish line in Kigali.

Arensman told the NOS that he was suffering from cramps, forcing him to stop with one lap to go. "I turned onto the Cote du Golf Kigali, the Cauberg as we call it, and went into a complete cramp. Moerenhout saw it happen; I had to grab the fence. My entire groin was tensed up, and I couldn't move my leg anymore."

"So yes, it was really tough. I'm bummed I didn't finish, but I think as a team we did everything right and at one point we were even riding for third place. It was so tough that it was purely about the legs; there was no way to analyze it," he concluded.