After a quick start of the race, it was Henderson who was in the early breakaway. While the peloton was getting smaller and smaller on the very tough course, the leading group managed to hold on until thirty kilometres from the finish. The last laps to the finish became a wear and tear race for the remaining riders. On the last climb towards the top of VAM-berg, Beekhuis and Henderson finished together with Romy Kasper just outside the top ten.

“I keep discovering and surprising myself”, Beekhuis said. “Today was a very hectic stage where positioning was very important. Each lap the peloton got a bit smaller when we passed the VAM-berg. It was a real knockout race. Anna had jumped away with a group early in the race, and for a long time it seemed like the group was going to make it. We looked for each other as a team to be at the front as much as possible . It was really a gruelling race. I needed three soigneurs to get my jacket on at the finish, it was that cold. ”

Race coach Marco Postma was very pleased with the results of his team: “We have really worked as a team over the past few days and that was our main goal. We made plans together and evaluated well after each stage. Everyone had a free role, but the fact that we ended up riding so strongly as a team is certainly a great result.”