The idea was to outflank and outnumber Mathieu van der Poel, but in the finale of Gent-Wevelgem, Mads Pedersen still faced something akin to a modern labour of Hercules, namely a head-to-head contest with the world champion.
Pedersen’s Lidl-Trek squad had raced with aggression and cohesion all afternoon, placing three men in the front group of seven that formed after the first ascent of the Kemmelberg, but a plan can only bring a team so far at a race like this. Come the last hour or so of racing, Pedersen had to find his own way past a seemingly insurmountable obstacle.
