Kooij unable to sprint after crash in chaotic Classic Brugge-De Panne finale
The 49th edition of the Classic Brugge-De Panne featured a strong lineup. The flat course of the Belgian spring classic traditionally offers an opportunity for the top sprinters. After the start in Bruges, five riders formed the breakaway of the day, but the peloton kept the group within reach. In that peloton, Team Visma | Lease a Bike contributed to the chase. Niklas Behrens – returning to competition after his collarbone fracture in the UAE Tour in February – did a lot of work at the head of the pack.
With the final kilometres approaching, the final remaining breakaway rider was caught by the nervous peloton. In the last two kilometres, the race was overshadowed by several heavy crashes. Kooij was among those involved but managed to cross the finish line battered and bruised. Juan Sebastián Molano was the surprising winner after a disrupted sprint.
“The road narrowings in the final kilometres led to some risky situations”
DS Grischa Niermann
Sports director Grischa Niermann reflected on a chaotic race. “As a team, we were in the right position, but a crash was unavoidable. The finale was simply too dangerous today. The road narrowings in the final kilometres led to some risky situations. Unfortunately, Olav also hit the ground, but the damage seems to be limited to abrasions. There are still some big goals ahead for him, so we’ll have to see how he recovers from this crash.”
Classic Brugge-De Panne ME
One day race
Result
Result
1
Juan Sebastián Molano
UAE Team Emirates – XRG
04:07:23
2
Jonathan Milan
Lidl – Trek
+00:00:00
3
Madis Mihkels
EF Education – EasyPost
+00:00:00
33
Loe van Belle
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
+00:00:15
101
Julien Vermote
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
+00:02:07
118
Tosh Van der Sande
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
+00:02:59
123
Daniel McLay
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
+00:03:29
140
Olav Kooij
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
+00:04:44
–
Victor Campenaerts
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
DNF
–
Niklas Behrens
Team Visma | Lease a Bike
DNF
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Subjects
Cycling – World Tour men
Grischa Niermann
1
