In Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, Jumbo Visma's Wout Van Aert took a solo victory in Ninove.

The overwhelming nature of his victory, as he pulled away from his rivals in Vosberg and arrived home 22 seconds ahead of everyone else, was such that the Flemish newspapers Het Nieuwsblad and Het Laatste Nieuws later lined up superlatives like "unbeatable" and "he is outstanding above all others"!

AG2

The AG2R Citroën leadership duo of Greg Van Avermaert and Oliver Niesen (Niesen described Van Aert as "out of this world") were overshadowed on Saturday afternoon, as was the Quick Step Alfavinir leadership duo.

After the race, van Avermaat, a two-time Omloop winner, acknowledged that the strongest man in the race had won, adding that there was little he or his competitors could do to stop van Aert in the last few kilometers.

"Behind him, Ollie [Naessen] and I were in a very close group. 'I still wanted to catch up to Van Aert, but that didn't happen and we had to fight for second place. It's good to see the best rider in a race win. I'm happy for the team, too, because we got a good result.

"Wout attacked at the toughest time. His legs were hurting and that's when only the best riders can accelerate. That's when he stands out. He was very strong in Vosberg.

Regardless of Van Avermaet's strength, Van Avermaet's third place was something of a surprise to the 36-year-old, who said his expectations were not high when he left the velodrome 't Kuipke in Ghent that morning, but that he chose to follow along rather than try to force himself to move. He said that by choosing to follow, he was able to get to the front of the race at the right moment.

"I am surprised by this result. I wasn't expecting much, but for once I was able to run in a different way. If you are a top favorite, you want to race and force something. But here I was able to use my experience and it worked. I was able to get to the front at the right moment and found myself in the top class.

"The final is a bit of a 'position sprint,' you have to be in a good position at the 700 meter mark. I knew that if I was behind Sonny Colbrelli I would be close to the podium, so I tried to pass him, but it didn't work out."

Juan Avermaat said, "I am happy to be back at the front in Flanders. While he kept his expectations low for future big races like Flanders and Roubaix, he said that the peak of his monumental victory in his hometown of Flanders should have passed. Nevertheless, he can still find a few percent of form.

"Don't dream of a Tour de Flanders title. 'If we do well in Tirreno-Adriatico, we can still make up one or two percent. Wout is tops and others will improve, but I have my value and I think I still have a chance in de Ronde."

"That's because De Londe is the right race for me. It's still possible, but my best years to win in De Londe are over."