Wout van Aert was unable to hide his disappointment after he had come up short against Mathieu van der Poel in the Bpost Bank Trofee race in Lille.

“Before the race I hoped that I could be in contention for the win,” the runner-up told Sporza.  "But it was quite clear that there was nothing to do against  Van der Poel. The strongest won and then it is easier to accept second place."

Van Aert took the final victory in the Bpost Bank Trofee series. "And I'm very proud of that. Like a championship, it is always nice to win a series.”