This Sunday 28th of April, Intermarché-Wanty achieved its fifteenth podium of the season thanks to Dion Smith, at the end of the fifth and final stage of the Tour de Romandie.
Under pouring rain, a small peloton competed for victory in the streets of Vernier. The New Zealander skillfully handled the technical final on wet road surface to finish third, behind Dorian Godon and Simone Consonni.
Smith thus takes his first podium since his return to Intermarché-Wanty in 2023, after having represented the colours of the Walloon structure for the first time on Pro Continental level in 2017 and 2018.
Another satisfying fact this week, Kobe Goossens completed his first stage race after eight months of absence, having notably finished tenth in the first stage, also in a group sprint.
“After one month without competition, my goal for this Tour de Romandie was to build competition rhythm towards an important month in May. With the bad weather conditions during this last stage today, I wanted to avoid taking risks. But I had good legs and managed to find the right slipstream in the last hectometers. I managed to achieve third place behind the untouchable Dorian Godon, who won his second stage. It is nice to end this tough week of racing with a first podium in two years. I appreciate giving my all for my teammates, but it is also satisfying to confirm that you are capable of achieving results yourself as well. This World Tour podium is excellent for my confidence before my next important race days, on which I hope to help our sprinters to victories on similar terrain.”
