"The fact that I am now winning here shows that I am on the right track" - Niels Vandeputte celebrates rare victory in Lille

For just the fifth time in his career, Niels Vandeputte was able to celebrate a victory on Sunday afternoon at the X2O Trofee in Lille, after a thrilling finale.

“It's really unbelievable. I have very few words for this. It was already in my head yesterday (Saturday, ed.). I like coming to Lille and have shown great things here in the past,” reflected the Alpecin-Deceuninck man in his post-race interview. “I knew where to do it and it turned out just as I had imagined."

Entering the final lap alongside Joris Nieuwenhuis and Joran Wyseure, victory was by no means assured for Vandeputte. "I don't really know what to say now… I chose to ride in third position, which of course entails risks. The second man can always make a mistake,” he continues. “I wanted to place an attack in front of the VIP tent. No one appeared to be able to respond immediately. Afterwards I wanted to stay as clear as possible in the technical zone and I succeeded. In the last sand strip I had a few meters to gain, although I only saw that when I turned onto the last straight line.”

“The feeling of winning a classification cross is truly incredible. I'm very happy that it worked out this season. This is extremely important. I have made progress in recent years, but it is less noticeable this year if you look at the development of Joris and Pim Ronhaar," he concludes. "The fact that I am now winning here shows that I am on the right track.”