One day after the prestigious victory of Francesco Busatto in Liège-Bastogne-Liège U23, team Circus-ReUz-Technord pursued with a new succes of Jasper Dejaegher, winner of the fifth and final stage of the Tour du Loir-et-Cher this Sunday.
The winner of the Wim Hendriks Trophy in March resisted in extremis to the return of the peloton and defeated the survivors of his breakaway at the end of the stage around Blois. The riders had to accomplish thirteen laps of 7.5 kilometer, containing a 700 meter climb leading to the finish. Thanks to this new succes, Circus-ReUz-Technord has now seven victories, among which three UCI wins.
He rewarded solid teamwork of the selection directed by Frederik Veuchelen all week. The day before, 18 year old sprinter Alessio Delle Vedove ended fifth in a bunch sprint, taking his fourth top ten of the season. Axel Huens, who finished ninth in the peloton, finished tenth overall. The Frenchman also received the combativity award on the second day and took fourth place on the third day.
"I still can't get over what I just accomplished because I didn't expect to win today at all. This week I have been working mostly for the team, in a role that gives me great satisfaction. Yesterday I dropped our chosen sprinter Alessio Delle Vedove on the last corner with 200 meters to go. Today, I rode at the front of the pack to close the gap to the breakaway riders in the early phase of this difficult criterium-like stage. After that, we stayed united and attentive around Axel Huens, our protected rider for the overall. Going into the last lap, I was able to make myself useful for my teammates one last time by slipping into a breakaway on the penultimate climb. The peloton was on our heels, but I never looked back and once I got to the top of the last climb, I started my sprint. I still can't believe I managed to get ahead of the fast Lucas Boniface and the peloton. I'm happy to give the team this new success.
"This second win of the season makes me very happy. After a Road Series race with the Wim Hendriks Trofee, this UCI victory is an additional step. I am enjoying the rewards of an excellent winter preparation with the team and the opportunities that the Intermarché-Circus-Wanty structure offers me. For example at the Scheldeprijs, where I was able to gain valuable experience with the World Team alongside Gerben Thijssen. Everything is going well for me and I hope to continue this momentum in my next events, namely the Tour of Bretagne and Paris-Roubaix U23.
