WM3 Pro Cycling completed the first stage of the Boels Rental Ladies Tour in one piece. The stage (132 kilometres) finished in Arnhem in a mass sprint. Anouska Koster did not succeed in getting a high ranking. Kirsten Wild sprinted to victory. Annemiek van Vleuten remains the overall leader.

“We were aware that today’s stage would end in a mass sprint. We had agreed to race attentively and, more importantly, to save as much energy as possible for the next stages, which was possible on this route. There was little wind, the roads were nice and wide, and we often raced through woods”, says DS Jeroen Blijlevens.

A real power sprint
The riders in the break-away of the day were caught well in advance of the finish line. Anouska Koster, who earlier in the day sprinted to a 2nd place in a climb sprint, got involved in the final sprint for the day victory. “The road went slightly downhill in the last kilometre. It was one of those real power sprints, less suited for Anouska.”