There was plenty to celebrate about the 2023 Tour of Flanders men's race, with Tadej Pogačar's spectacular performance, Mathieu van der Poel's fourth straight podium, but even Van der Poel was unimpressed with one moment in the race: Team DSM's tactics on the Kortekeer with 126 kilometres to go.
John Degenkolb and four teammates amassed at the front of the peloton as the early breakaway held a six-minute lead and proceeded to go at such a slow pace that some riders toward the back were forced to put a foot down. Then, over the top, they accelerated sharply.
