Van Kerckhove wins overall classification at Flèche du Sud, Brennan sprints to third stage victory

# Van Kerckhove Triumphs at Flèche du Sud; Brennan Clinches Third Stage Victory

Matisse Van Kerckhove celebrated a remarkable achievement at the Flèche du Sud, finishing first in the overall classification and marking his maiden general classification victory as a professional cyclist. The young Belgian, set to join Team Visma | Lease a Bike’s WorldTeam next season, expressed his excitement: “It’s absolutely brilliant to win a general classification at pro level for the first time in my career. The fact that I managed to do it as a Devo rider makes it even more special,” he said. He also acknowledged his team’s incredible efforts during the week: “I’m incredibly grateful to everyone for this week. The team has done a fantastic job.”

With a five-second lead going into the final stage, Van Kerckhove faced a challenging course featuring eight local laps of twenty kilometers, each with a steep climb. Team Visma | Lease a Bike maintained tight control over the peloton, ensuring that breakaway riders didn’t gain excessive time. “On paper, it looked like an easy stage, but I didn’t find it that easy. There was a constant crosswind, which made it hard work to stay on the wheel of the rider in front,” Van Kerckhove noted. As the race neared the finish, tension mounted with a twenty-second gap to the leading group, but the yellow-and-black team pulled together and managed to close the distance on the final ascent.

Matthew Brennan contributed significantly to the team’s success, securing his third stage victory. “It feels good to win here for the third time, but I’m also very happy for Matisse. He’s won a stage race among the pros for the first time in his career,” Brennan shared, praising his teammate. “We did it perfectly as a team. Everyone stuck to the plan and gave it their all. It’s wonderful that I was able to finish it off in the end. This is a step in the right direction and towards the bigger goals that lie ahead.”

Team Visma | Lease a Bike concluded the event with an impressive tally of four stage victories, the overall win, as well as the youth and points classifications. Sports director Gaëtan Pons expressed pride in the team’s performance: “I’m very proud of the way we’ve performed here. Everyone was watching us because we had the best team at the start. Of course, you feel a bit of pressure to get everything right, but I think we can safely say we were by far the strongest team. We’re very pleased.”

The results from the fifth stage confirmed the dominance of Team Visma | Lease a Bike, with Brennan finishing first, followed by Roy Hoogendoorn and Marcus Sander Hansen in second and third place, respectively. The success at the Flèche du Sud sets a promising tone for the team’s future endeavors.