“I was hoping to make the top 10 and that would already have been great but now I beat all the best in the world. I’m just a farmer from Belgian and I do this, it’s unexpected. I cannot believe it. I knew I was in good condition, but to win stage in the Tour de France, especially stage 1 is something I never could dream of. To beat van Aert, van der Poel and Ganna, it’s unbelievable for me. The roads were still very wet when I rode so I think I had the same conditions as the favourites and yet I finished 5’’ in front of van Aert. I will have the yellow jersey on my shoulders at least for one day. I will only be able to realise when the Tour will be over, or maybe on Monday when I’ll see my girlfriend and my son. I want to share this moment with Tim Declercq who is one of my best friend and couldn’t ride the Tour because of Covid.”
