Argos-Shimano seemed to have the bunch sprint under control until Kenny van Hummel outsprinted everyone as he chose the right path on the left side of the road in the last 200 metres in the opening stage of the Arctic Race of Norway today.

It was even a 1-2 for Vacansoleil-DCM with Barry Markus passing Thor Hushovd (BMC Racing Team) at the very end.

After claiming his first win of the season, Van Hummel will start stage 2 with the leader’s jersey tomorrow.

“I’m really happy with this victory”, stage 1 winner Kenny van Hummel said. “I’ve waited for a long time to get my first win this year. I’m glad it happens here and now. We’re not used to racing so far north and it’s a bit of a climate change after the hot weather I recently experienced in Belgium. I was a bit surprised to see so many spectators on the road despite the cold. The race was also hard today and I was struggling a little bit. But at the end I managed to fight well for positioning. I was in competition with Thor Hushovd and it was a great challenge to beat him here as he was so motivated for winning in his home country. But I wanted to position myself behind the wheels of the Argos guys and I did. In the last 200 metres, I went full speed. It feels great to be a winner again.”