The Team Jumbo-Visma rider has praised his teammates for setting up his final sprint to victory in the opening stage of the Tour de Hongrie.
The “almost perfect” lead-out established by the young team positioned Olav Kooij well in a bunch sprint to the finish line, as the Dutchman managed to hold off a fast-finishing Elia Viviani in second place after launching his final attack on the opposite side of the road.
“I had to go full speed because they came up fast behind me," Kooij said.
“With many good sprinters at the start, this victory is obviously very nice.
“It was a pretty quiet day, so you know it will be very hectic at the end. As a team, we took good positions in the final and the guys dropped me off perfectly. That allowed me to ride a good sprint, with victory as a reward.”
Kooij’s stage win in Székesfehérvár follows the rider’s overall victory in the Circuit de la Sarthe last month, and is the thirteenth victory of the season for Team Jumbo-Visma. The team’s sports director, Robert Wagner, was delighted with their efforts.
"It's great what we showed here as a young team.,” he said.
“The lead-out was almost perfect and went almost according to plan. Many of these guys are from our Development Team or have ridden on that team. As a sports director, it makes me extra proud. Olav proved that he can handle anyone in the sprint. This is a dream start. And there will be plenty of opportunities in the coming days."
Wagner and Team Jumbo-Visma will be hoping for more of the same when the second stage of the tour gets underway in Karcag overnight.
You can watch the second stage of the Tour de Hongerie LIVE tonight on SBS On Demand from 12am AEST.
