Kooij and Visma | Lease a Bike disappointed after failed lead-out by Van Aert: “Wout insisted on doing the lead-out”

Dutch dominance in Lecce! Casper van Uden’s stage 4 win at the Giro d’Italia was made even sweeter for Dutch fans as Olav Kooij finished second and Maikel Zijlaard grabbed third, completing a full red-white-and-blue podium. But behind the celebrations, the stories were quite different for the first two across the line after Van Uden. Emotions varied, and Visma | Lease a Bike’s sprinter Kooij was clearly disappointed, especially with the missed lead-out from Wout van Aert.

In the final kilometre, Kooij was still well placed near the front, but with only Edoardo Affini at his side, he was ultimately overrun. “It was actually pretty technical, and we knew that,” the 23-year-old sprinter told Cycling Pro after the stage. The lack of a proper sprint train ended up costing him, and the absence of Wout van Aert in the finale stood out. “I think we had some trouble finding each other on the local circuit. I managed to weave through the wheels a bit, and then me and the guys came together in the last lap. Edo brought me up well. But maybe we were missing one more guy,” Kooij explained.

His Italian teammate brought him up well in the tricky final kilometre, but Visma | Lease a Bike’s sprinter was still swarmed from both sides in the final 300 metres. “It was a bit strange. The pace dropped after the last real corner. I got a bit boxed in and couldn’t immediately find a gap to launch my sprint. By the time I did, it was already too late,” Kooij said. He’ll get another shot the day after tomorrow in Naples, where he took the win last year.

Marc Reef backed up his sprinter after the finish. “We had planned to be in the mix for the win,” the Dutch sports director told Het Laatste Nieuws. “I think we were well positioned until we hit the finishing circuit. But once we were on the lap itself, we lost each other. It was pretty chaotic and I think a lot of teams struggled to stay together. Edo still managed to get Olav into a good position, but Olav said afterwards that he hesitated for just a moment and that’s what cost him.”

The plan was for Van Aert to be the final lead-out man and the Belgian was visibly frustrated when he couldn’t do his job. “Wout is a real team player and insisted on doing the lead-out. So when it doesn’t work out, I can imagine he’s frustrated,” said Reef. “He tried to move up but kept getting blocked. In a finale like that, it’s just impossible to get back to the front and do your job properly.”

Right behind the winner, it was Maikel Zijlaard who sprinted to third. The Tudor rider was in the right wheel but couldn’t get past Van Uden. “Like you said, it was really hectic,” he said afterwards. “But as a team we did everything we needed to do. They kept me safe and calm and in a chaotic finish like this, that means a lot. I have to thank them because they trust me. Third in a Giro stage, I would have signed for that,” smiled the nephew of Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel.

The Dutchman riding for a Swiss team also knew how important positioning would be in the final kilometre. “With that tight right-hand corner, it was really a fight on the bike. Once through, it felt like a rollercoaster,” he said. “Picnic handled it best and deserved the win. Chapeau to them.” A Dutch podium sweep in a Grand Tour had not happened since the 2002 Tour de France, when Karsten Kroon won the stage to Plouay ahead of Servais Knaven and Erik Dekker. This is only the fifth time in history that a Dutch clean sweep has occurred.