A scorching hot final stage from Menen to Geraardsbergen caused a battle of attrition in the peloton. Alec Segaert finally had to give way to defending champion Tim Wellens, who rode to his fourth overall victory. Belgian Champion Arnaud De Lie won the queen stage.
World Champion Mathieu van der Poel did not make another appearance on the starting podium in Menen. He injured his knee during Thursday’s time trial in Tessenderlo where he barely managed to stay upright and was clearly still suffering too much discomfort. This meant all eyes of the team were on the stage winner of the previous day, Jasper Philipsen.
The two passages over the iconic Muur van Geraardsbergen in combination with the Bosberg, as well as the Kluisberg, Côté de Trieu, Paterberg and Denderoordberg took the vertical metres of this final stage to a total of just over 2,000. Combined with exceeding the 200-kilometre mark and temperatures of over 30°C, it was set to be a gruelling final stage.
Nevertheless, the peloton did not hold back and went into the race with a flying start. A breakaway of as many as 21 riders raced off and sent some dangerous pawns ahead: Nils Politt, Per Strand Hagenes, Brent Van Moer and Matteo Trentin, Marco Haller and Dries De Bondt. The peloton always followed within two minutes, gradually reducing the gap with the leaders as they neared the centre of Geraardsbergen.
The Muur of Geraardsbergen as the ultimate battleground
In the peloton, the favourites were always positioned right at the front on the Muur van Geraardsbergen, where Belgian Champion Arnaud De Lie and Italian Champion Alberto Bettiol showed themselves the strongest the first two times. At the very front, the big breakaway was thinned out and at the start of the last lap we saw the last six escapees being caught by the favourite group. There again, it was De Lie with and defending champion Tim Wellens who put on the pressure. They saw four riders return after the Kapelmuur, minus leader Alec Segaert.
In the chase, Segaert could no longer count on teammates. He watched as, second by second, Wellens rode to his second consecutive overall victory. On top of that, Wellens also gathered important bonus seconds during Renewi’s Green KM, staying in front with the leading group was paramount.
At four kilometres from the finish line, De Lie and Wellens took off together. The stakes for both were clear. They stormed towards the finish on the Vesten side by side. De Lie stomped his way to his first victory in the tricoloured champion’s jersey. Wellens triumphed with his fourth overall victory in the Renewi Tour, an absolute record.
Behind them, it was a game of seconds for chaser Segaert, in pursuit for his General classification and also for the junior jersey against Per Strand Hagenes who finished seventh. Segaert came 20th, 27 seconds behind Hagenes. Enough to claim second place in the General classification and making him the winner of the Youth classification by a margin of two seconds. Jasper Philipsen’s points jersey and Jordy Bouts’ Combativity classification were no longer in danger.
Arnaud De Lie, Final Stage Winner Renewi Tour: “Special to Win in the Champion’s Jersey”
“To get my first win here as Belgian Champion is really special. The initial plan was to follow and defend Alec Segaert’s lead. In the final, I tried to take a few seconds on Tim Wellens, during the Green KM, but at that moment I was really at my limit. I felt super strong throughout the ride though. I think Wellens and I were the strongest in the race today. I could not play a significant role in the General classification so it was clear that the spoils could be shared. I didn’t want to wait for the sprint, so I started on time. With another stage win by Alec in the time trial, we can look back on a successful Renewi Tour with two wins.”
