The Gand-Wevelgem Classic has changed its name but has not spared emotions: on the finish line of the Flemish town of Wevelgem, Jasper Philipsen has secured his sixtieth career victory. In Flanders Fields, he gave cycling enthusiasts wonderful images, first with the two-man breakaway with Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel, caught three kilometers from the finish line and then, Philipsen's perfect sprint, which today marked one of his most beautiful victories.

"I've been chasing a victory in this race for a long time. It's a Classic I wanted to win for years, but I never had the right legs at the end, today everything went the right way and I managed to bring home the victory".

The sprinter from Mol has managed to stand out earlier this season just before Milan-San Remo, with success at the Nokere Koerse: if things hadn't gone well at the San Remo Classic, shortly after he came second at the Ronde van Brugge behind Groenewegen, proving he was ready for In Flanders Field. "It was a beautiful race and the fact that Van Aert and van der Poel were ahead worked well for us. I can't say I had any particular feeling; I never arrived at the finish line thinking: Ok, I'm in position to win. It was a really grueling race, all or nothing. Obviously, with Mathieu up front, we knew we had an advantage. The only thing I had to do was keep calm until the end".

Van der Poel and Van Aert together provided a truly thrilling spectacle, but both knew they wouldn't make it alone to the Wevelgem finish line.

"Mathieu had already told us several kilometers before the finale that he didn't have his legs at their best because of Friday's race and that he wouldn't make the finale. But if you manage to arrive up front with two riders, then your legs overall shouldn't be that bad. However, we knew that the straightaway to the finish line would be quite long and that it would be difficult to have fresh legs for a good finale. Fortunately I was feeling good and a finale like that was exactly what I needed".

The victory was decided in the sprint and Philipsen had to struggle to find the best position before the sprint. "Thanks to Senechal's lead-out, we found a way to pass and put ourselves in the right position. It wasn't easy. We did the sprint with Jonas Geens and Florian Senechal, they're both new to the team, so for them it was also quite new. But they were good and found the perfect moment to fight each other and work together and use our strengths together. We had a good plan and it's really nice to be able to pull it off together. So thanks to the whole team for this result".

Philipsen, even though he had already won at Nokere, wasn't yet in his best form, but this new victory bodes well for upcoming races. "I was still looking for my best form, despite having worked hard during the winter. I'm happy that this work is now paying off. You know, it's not easy to win one of these Spring Classics when there are riders like Van der Poel and Pogacar in the group. But now I'm really happy".

Alpecin Premier Tech is now aiming for the Monument Classics, particularly the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix.
"Roubaix is certainly a race suited to a rider like me, I've already proven that by finishing second, but winning is a whole different story. Mathieu and I will participate as leaders and who knows, maybe one day I'll win that too".