Soudal Quick-Step Devo Team savours its fifth win of the year.
Gil Gelders brought Belgium’s first victory in eight years at the U23 Gent-Wevelgem, after he dropped all his opponents on the roads to Ieper. The 20-year-old was part of a strong seven-man group that took off the first time up the Kemmelberg and stayed together until three kilometers to go, when they began attacking each other.
Soudal Quick-Step Devo Team’s young Belgian remained attentive, countering those moves before launching one of his own inside the last two kilometers. It turned out to be the race-winning attack, as Gelders was not seen again until the finish, where he arrived eight seconds clear of Nicolo Buratti (Cycling Team Friuli) and Henri Uhlig (Germany), who rounded out the podium.
“Once we attacked from the distance, we rode well together and opened a nice gap on the chasers. In the last kilometers everyone tried to go, but it wasn’t easy, as we were riding full gas. I waited patiently, accelerated not far from the line and could keep the speed until the finish. This makes me happy, Gent-Wevelgem is an important race, so to win it for the team means a lot”, Gil said after the squad’s fifth victory of the season.
Photo credit: ©Wout Beel
Gil Gelders 