Not for the first time the Scheldeprijs was marred by a heavy fall in the closing stages. Former top sprinters and fellow team managers Walter Planckaert and Tom Steels shed light on the many crashes in the peloton. "Previously, there are also cases, that has not changed", Steels (Etixx-QuickStep) said on The Morning on Radio 1.

According to Walter Planckaert, sports director at Topsport Vlaanderen-Baloise, the many crashes have nothing to do with the Scheldeprijs per se. "Crashes occur in all races.”

"If there are very hotly contested, then everyone wants to win. Some warn the risks and that speed is asking for trouble."

Etixx-Quick Step DS Tom Steels adds. "In the final, there are many trees that the wind keeping off the riders. This makes it difficult for the peloton to get in line."

"There was no team that really controled it. The rest was messy, sprinting into six, seven rows. These are usually the most dangerous bunch sprints. The smallest movement then creates a domino effect."