Dylan van Baarle went solo to win the primary traditional of the season on Saturday on the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.
Arnaud De Lie gained a dash for second place after recovering impressively from a crash, whereas one other Jumbo man Christophe Laporte got here third.
Van Baarle gained Paris-Roubaix in 2022 and was second on the World Championships in 2021.
On Saturday he attacked from distance after the penultimate climb, and crossed the road together with his arms extensive open some 20 seconds forward of a fast-moving pursuit posse.
Tom Pidcock was amongst that group, whose mixed strengths was not sufficient to reel within the relentless Dutchman taking his debut Jumbo-Visma win.
“I went for it when everyone was struggling,” stated Van Baarle. “I saw a moment. It was quite a hard section of the race, so I decided to go.”
“Van Baarle was just the best today,” defined Team UAE man Tim Merlier. “We knew we were never going to catch him from about 40km out.”
No stopping Dylan Van Baarle at present in #OHN23! 👑 In the background, Arnaud De Lie 🥈and Christophe Laporte 🥉dash to a podium place. #OHNmen pic.twitter.com/sXUgozXR87
— Omloop Nieuwsblad (@OmloopHNB) February 25, 2023
