Eneco Tour: Victor Vercouillie best in an all-day breakaway for first pro victory on stage 4

Victor Vercouillie (Flanders-Baloise) won stage 4 on an emphatic day for the breakaway, taking his first pro victory on the uphill drag of Col du VAM.

Cériel Desal (Soudal-QuickStep Devo) took second and Tars Poelvoorde (Lotto-Groupe Wanty) slotted into third, leaving Rick Ottema (EEW-VDK Cyclingteam) and Julian Vergouw (Metec-SolarWatt p/b Mantel) off the podium from the original group of five, the bunch two seconds behind Vercouillie at the conclusion of their all-day escapade.

“I went in the breakaway today because with the cobblestones and the weather, it was I think that was the best move for me and the team. That was the first plan. Then in the last lap we still [had] 1:30, that was the moment I believe in it,” the 23-year-old told organisers about getting his first win.

“I was the last lap the whole time with my dad in my head. I lost him two months ago. That was the only thing I could think of in the final lap. So I knew I needed to go in a really late attack, and that was a perfect moment. So I think he will be proud.”

The GC remained consistent from Friday’s shift, with Victor Campenaerts (Visma-Lease a Bike) in control of the overall lead by 17 seconds over Wessel Mouris (Unibet Rose Rockets), the final day of racing on Sunday.

The three Belgians and two Dutch riders stayed away from the peloton through early rain and then blue skies for a little more than 100 kilometres, never gaining more than two minutes.

On the final closing circuit with 13km to go in the 149.8km contest, the quintet held a gap of just over a minute. All five riders in the breakaway were looking to score a first career. It was Vercouillie who launched the decisive attack on the final 1,000 metres, signaling to the sky as he crossed the line with a small gap in recognition that he raced for his father who died earlier this year.

Stage 4 Results

General Classification after stage 4

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