Prediction respected, Mathieu Van der Poel won the Tour of Flanders for the third time. It couldn't have gone any other way given the world champion's form, who has his fifth 'monument classic', after the three successes in Belgium and those in Paris-Roubaix and Milan-Sanremo. The Dutchman also becomes, ten years after the Swiss Cancellara, the seventh cyclist to have won the Flanders three times and, eight years after Peter Sagan, the sixth to have achieved this goal wearing the rainbow jersey.
Van der Poel made history in his own right, leaving on the Koppenberg, 45 kilometers from the finish line: at that point it was understood that the very classic already had its winner, who was accustomed, as a good cyclocross rider (he is world champion in this too specialty), in rain and mud he proceeded with indifference to the adverse conditions and, in the end, having crossed the finish line, he got off his bicycle and raised it to the sky to celebrate his triumph. But today Italian cycling is also smiling, thanks to the second place of Luca Mozzato, a 26-year-old from Veneto representing Arkea B&B, who in the sprint for second place among Van der Poel's closest pursuers beat the Australian Michael Matthews in a photo finish. Previously, Alberto Bettiol had done well, going on the run together with the Belgian Dylan Teuns, just over a minute behind VDP, but the two were caught in the final meters and in the sprint for the places of honor they paid for the effort.
Reproduction reserved © Copyright ANSA