PostNord Danmark Rundt - Tour of Denmark

Danmark Rundt, the country’s most important race, got underway Tuesday afternoon with a flat stage held around Aalborg. On paper, it should have been a pretty straightforward day, with the sprinters’ teams controlling the breakaway and a mass gallop to decide the first leader of the competition, but it turned out to be more complicated.

The main reason for this was that once the six-man breakaway was reeled in – in part, thanks to a mammoth work of the Soudal Quick-Step boys – attacks began coming left and right. In the last 30 kilometers of the stage, these countless accelerations and a crash that ended up splitting the bunch played a huge role in the final outcome. Despite an incredibly long pull of Casper Pedersen – who made his return from injury at his home race – in the closing kilometers, late attacker Soren Waerenskjold (Uno-X) made it, taking the win by a handful of seconds.

Fabio Jakobsen was the fastest rider of the chasing group, taking runner-up behind the Norwegian for what was his ninth podium finish of the season, a result that puts him in second place on the general classification. The race will now continue with an undulating stage to Silkeborg, but without Mauri Vansevenant. The Belgian was among those involved in the crash and had to abandon the race, but fortunately only with some abrasions and surface injuries as consequence.

Photo credit: ©Tim De Waele / Getty Images