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Laura Weislo

E3 Saxo Classic: Mathieu van der Poel punishes rivals but fights to hold off fast-closing chase group for three-peat

van der Poel Mathieu van der Poel Florian Vermeersch Stan Dewulf Per Strand Hagenes Anthony Turgis BELGA MAG AlpecinPremier Tech UnoX Mobility DAVID PINTENS
Dutch Mathieu van der Poel of Alpecin-Premier Tech celebrates as he crosses the finish line to win the 'E3 Saxo Bank Classic' one day cycling race, 208,8km from and to Harelbeke, on Friday 27 March 2026. BELGA PHOTO DAVID PINTENS (Photo by DAVID PINTENS / BELGA MAG / Belga via AFP).

Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) soloed to victory for the third time in a row in the E3 Saxo Classic, but for the first time he was nearly caught in the final kilometre.

Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG) was about to catch Van der Poel at the red kite, but chose that moment to sit up and look for one of his three companions to pull through, and found no help. With that one moment of hesitation, the chasers gave the win away to the Dutchman.

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