Lars van der Haar is the first European champion among the elite men. In the final lap, the Dutchman was stronger than Belgian Wout van Aert. Kevin Pauwels won the bronze medal in Huijbergen.

"I still have to get used to this," Lars van der Haar suggested afterwards. "I thought it was over when Van Aert was gone. I had just given up. I could only hope for a mistake from Wout to get back. I knew he was better in the sand, but that I was better in the technical areas. I just wanted to lay all the cards on the table. If I jumped off the bike, I knew I had lost. But when I could start a running section with an advantage, I knew it could be good for me. Afterwards, the winner is always right. Wout made one mistake, otherwise he might have won.

During the race, the Dutchman made some strange gestures towards his team. Did it have anything to do with a negative reception from the fans? "No, I wanted to know how far Kevin Pauwels was behind. So I knew if I could play poker. However, nobody seemed to understand what I meant."