Last year Antoine Demoitie (Wallonie) proved that he has the potential to mix it up with the best when he won the hard one-day race Tour du Finistere. This year he confirmed his class when he was second in the GP Marseillaise and today he took another runner-up spot behind Gianni Meersman in the Handzame Classic.

"I stayed in the wheels of my teammates all day," he told Directvelo. "Because a bunch sprint was very likely today, I did not have to move. I was very well positioned in the wheel of Gianni Meersman in the last 500 meters. But when I wanted to start my sprint, Lampaert swung off. I had to make a big swerve to avoid it and so I was unable to get back to Meersman. I'm a little disappointed with second place, knowing that the victory was close. But it also reassures me for the future."

Another continental rider in the spotlight was Tom Wirtgen (Leopard) who was in the break for most of the race.

"This morning at the start, I thought about the fact that last week I watched Gianni Meersman on TV and now I had to ride against him. It's pretty funny. 

"Tom Flammang, my team manager told me I had to join the break to show myself for the big teams. When I was there, I thought "Phew, it will be hard today." I suffered all day, this is perhaps the hardest race I've ever done. 

"198 km of racing, that's another thing than a junior race. I broke down in the last ten kilometers and I finished a few seconds behind the pack.

"I'm very happy where I am as a first-year U23 riders. I absolutely did not expect to be at this level now. I am still attending school until May. It's very difficult for me to combine the two activities but it shows me that I still have toom for improvement.

"Now I hope now I will be selected for the Triptyque des Monts et Chateaux."