“I’m happy with my performance. This was the best I could do today”, Hagenes said afterward. “A finish like this suits me really well. My teammates had full confidence in me and made sure I was in a good position heading into the final meters. I gave it everything I had, but I just wasn’t strong enough to win.”

Sports director Sierk Jan de Haan looked back on a successful opening day. “We really wanted to go for the sprint with Per, and thanks in part to the strong teamwork, we were able to do that. Per was also very strong in the finale and finished fourth against a strong field. That gives both him and the team a huge confidence boost heading into the next few days.”

Tomorrow is likely to end in a bunch sprint, while the following stages will feature more climbing. “We’re aiming for a stage win. We’ve marked stages three and five because we’re very strong across the board as a team. In the time trial, we’ll go all-out and see where we stand in the overall standings. Davide is our leader, but Per should also be able to finish high.”