Jenno Berckmoes (Lotto-Intermarché) pulled off a stunning heist to win stage 3 of the Renewi Tour, turning a late breakaway into success mere metres ahead of the charging peloton.
On a route inspired by the Tour of Flanders, the 25-year-old Belgian went clear of a fragmented peloton in the company of Alec Segaert (Bahrain Victorious) over the final ascent of the famous Muur van Geraardsbergen.
Despite only holding a narrow gap on the reduced peloton for much of the 33-kilometre finishing circuit, the pair of them returned to Geraardsbergen with a slender lead and a shot, with the finish line positioned half-way up the climb – on the cobbles of De Vesten but before the iconic steep section of the Muur by the chapel.
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Berckmoes attacked Segaert with 500 metres to go and surged clear as his compatriot was swallowed up by the charging pack. His own teammate Arnaud De Lie opened the sprint behind, with race leader Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) coming around for second place three seconds down, just ahead of Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM) in third.
Philipsen was forced to hand over the leader’s jersey to Berckmoes, who also claimed 18 seconds in time bonuses – 10 for his stage win and eight during the ‘Green Kilometre’ on the Bosberg, shortly after the winning move was made.
Having started the day nine seconds down, Berckmoes now leads the race by 15 seconds over Philipsen, with Kooij another six seconds down. In a race that was always going to be decided by seconds, and where the Green Kilometre bonuses can have a big influence as they did today, it’s wide open as we head into the final weekend.
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|
Position |
Rider (Team) |
Time |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Jenno Berckmoes (Lotto Intermarché) |
4:09:11 |
|
2 |
Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin – Premier Tech) |
+0:03 |
|
3 |
Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM Team) |
,, |
|
4 |
Arnaud De Lie (Lotto Intermarché) |
,, |
|
5 |
Robert Donaldson (Team Jayco AlUla) |
+0:06 |
|
6 |
Quinten Hermans (Pinarello Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team) |
,, |
|
7 |
Mike Teunissen (XDS Astana Team) |
,, |
|
8 |
Pepijn Reinderink (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) |
+0:08 |
|
9 |
Filippo Fiorelli (Soudal Quick-Step) |
,, |
|
10 |
Søren Wærenskjold (Uno-X Mobility) |
,, |
| Row 0 – Cell 0 | Row 0 – Cell 1 | Row 0 – Cell 2 |
| Row 1 – Cell 0 | Row 1 – Cell 1 | Row 1 – Cell 2 |
| Row 2 – Cell 0 | Row 2 – Cell 1 | Row 2 – Cell 2 |
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