Gaetan Bille (Verandas Willems) continued his great 2015 season when he took an expected victory in the Volta a Portugal prologue. The Belgian covered the 6km course in Viseu in a time of 7.22 which was three seconds faster than defending champion Gustavo Veloso (W52) who got the race off to a great start by taking second.

A few years ago strong showings in Belgian races allowed Gaetan Bille to get a chance at the WorldTour lvel with the Lotto Belisol team but after two unsuccessful years he was forced to step down to continental level for the 2014 season. Verandas Willems picked him up and after a slow 2014 season he has really proved his potential in 2015.

Bille has been flying since he finished third in the Fleche du Sud in May and after a second place in the Paris-Arras Tour, he topped it all with a third place in the Tour of Belgium behind Greg Van Avermaet and Tiesj Benoot. He laid the foundations for the latter result by taking third in the prologue and as he has always been a specialist in this discipline, he was naturally the favourite when the Volta a Portugal kicked off on a 6km course in Viseu.

The flat roads were perfect for a specialist like Bille and he fully lived up to expectations by taking the win and the first yellow jersey in the national tour. Covering the distance in 7.22, he was in a class of his own as he was 3 seconds faster than the runner-up, Gustavo Cesar Veloso.

"I am really happy to win here because it is a nice race, also because you take the yellow jersey. It is really nice. For me it is not a surprise because I was already third in the Tour of Belgium prologue so I came here to win. I am happy to make it," Bille told RTP.

"I am not a great climber so for me it was important to win today. Now I will take it day by day. Tomorrow is not a flat stage but I hope to keep the yellow jersey. Then it is an uphill finish so I don’t know how I will do there.

"The first goal is to try to go for GC. If I can’t follow the best climbers, I will focus on the time trial on the penultimate day."