Niki Terpstra got his Driedaagse van De Panne off to the best possible start as the Dutchman made it into the 11-rider group that decided the opening stage. As none of his greatest rivals for the overall made the split, he finds himself in an excellent position ahead of the final two days.

For many - including CyclingQuotes - Niki Terpstra is the man to beat at this year's Driedaagse van de Panne as the Dutchman has all the skills to excel in the short stage race and is currently in excellent condition. The Dutchman couldn't have wished a better start to the race as he took time on all his biggest rivals in today's opening stage.

Terpstra had to dig really deep when Peter Sagan made the decisive attack on the Eikenmolen with 10km to but after a short chase with teammate Gert Steegmans, he made it across to the Slovakian and his teammate Oscar Gatto. Joining an earlier breakaway, they managed to stay away to the finish, putting 19 seconds into the peloton.

None of the escapees were among the riders expected to contend for the overall which is usually determined by the opening stage and the final time trial. Luke Durbridge - on paper his biggest rival - tried to get back to the front but ended up losing 11 seconds.

"The collaboration was good in the break and it was a good move for us in terms of the general classification. The time trial on the last day is important and it’s good to have Niki up there on GC already," sports director Wilfried Peeters told Cyclingnews at the finish.

"It was a pity that Gert was a little behind on the last corner because he could have won the stage, but it’s not so bad because there was no super time trial specialist in the first group. I think we can look for the classification.

"They didn’t know that Durbridge was trying to get back on, but it worked out perfectly for us. We didn’t want Durbridge and Démare, two of the favourites, coming back to the front group."

The next two stages are expected to suit the sprinters but Terpstra is expected to come to the fore in the afternoon time trial on Thurday.