Third victory in ten days for Arnaud De Liewhich also makes the Wallonia Circuit 2024. The Belgian of Dstny Lotwho recently returned to racing and already won the Famenne Ardenne Classic and Tro-Bro Léon, prevailed in his home race by sprinting Axel Zingle (Cofidis) and the surprising 18 year old British Matthew Brennan, young man from Visma’s development training | Lease a Bike but today competing with the first team jersey. The Azzurri also find their place in the top-10 of the day Luca Mozzato (Arkéa-B&B Hotels), sixth, and the 19 year old Simone Gualdi (Intermarché-Wanty), tenth at the finish line of Charleroi.
The video of the arrival
The story of the race
Immediately after the official start, two riders break away from the group: it’s about Samuele Privitera (Hagens Berman-Jayco) e Christian Ingemann Lindquist (Airtox-Carl Ras), to which they then try to return Thomas Bergagna (General Store-Essegibi-F.lli Curia), Felix Ritzinger (Team Felt Felbermayr), Gianni Marchand (Tarteletto-Isorex) e Mirko Bozzola (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team). However, only the last two manage to catch up with the leading pair, thus forming a quartet that quickly gains a 2’30” advantage over the peloton.
Despite some oscillations, this gap remains constant until entering the last 100 kilometres, when the group begins to accelerate and catch up. In front, Bozzola is the first to lose contact, with the Italian being caught -72 from the finish line, but the adventure of the other three pacesetters doesn’t last much longer, running out 68 kilometers from the finish. At -60, four men start from the compact group: Aime De Gendt (Cofidis), Loe Van Belle (Visma | Lease a Bike), Baptiste Vadic (TotalEnergies) e Marcel Camprubì (Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team)
Within a short time, these men manage to gain about 25 seconds on the platoon pulled by Dstny Lot, who keeps them there and then closes in on them 45 kilometers from the end. Timid attacks and counterattacks in the following kilometers lead to a sustained pace for long stretches, but no one manages to make a difference except Gustav Frederik Dahl (Airtox-Carl Ras) for a few kilometres, and the compact peloton crosses the finish line for the first time with -33 minutes to go. 5000 meters later Vadic and Van Belle set off again, this time following them Gerben Kuypers (Intermarché-Wanty).
The margin that this trio manages to gain reaches a maximum of 42″, but Lotto Dstny continues to keep good guard and begins the last lap of the final circuit with 25″ to make up on Van Belle, who near the passage on the finish line separated Vadic and Kuypers. These two are filmed 9000 meters from the finish line, when Geoffrey Soupe (TotalEnergies) leaves the platoon and, within a couple of kilometres, returns to the tread. Thanks to the Frenchman, the action receives new life and the two manage to resist the return of the group up to 1500 meters from the finish despite the group work of the Uno-X Mobility.
Having now reached the long, slightly uphill final straight, however, no team has a way to organize a train for the sprint, even if Q36.5 Pro Cycling and Israel-Premier Tech try. A rather confused sprint then emerges, launched at -300 meters from Jake Stewart (Israel-Premier Tech), which however is surpassed by Axel Zingle (Cofidis) e Matthew Brennan (Visma | Lease a Bike). However, he is lurking at the wheel of the latter Arnaud De Lie (Lotto Dstny), who opens the throttle and passes in the last 25 meters, thus putting the Transalpine and the British behind him.
