Kim Heiduk sprinted to second place on the third stage of Tour De Wallonie to also be promoted into the race lead.
Axel Laurance also managed to come home fourth in the sprint after a crash inside the final 2km of the 176km race saw much of the field out of contention to the sprint.
Speaking after the stage, Heiduk said:
“Yeah I’m really happy. A bit of a surprise I would say, and a bit disappointed to not win the stage. I think today was a really beautiful stage and luckily it was dry, unlike yesterday! It was super nice, and the final was a bit more difficult with the wind today.
“We tried to split the bunch in the second last lap but it didn’t really work. We then focused on the final and the boys did an amazing job to position me, Axel and Sam. Originally, we wanted to try and go for Sam [Welsford] today but he was blocked a bit further behind and was held up after the crash.
“I’m enjoying some good shape and it’s fun being here with the boys, we have a really good atmosphere. Every day is nice and we try and get the best result. For sure, I will try and keep the leaders jersey. In the end, we’re here with Axel and me for GC, and we have two good cards I think. We will try and win with one of us, and tomorrow will be a good test for us."
As well as leading the GC, three seconds ahead of Jordi Meeus (Red Bull - BORA - Hansgrohe) Heiduk is also leading the points classification.
Tomorrow will see the riders tackle another punchy stage from Dison to Eupen, covering 166km.