Gloag (Visma | LaB) astonished after stunning victory: "Hope to show more great things this season"

Winning a race on your third race day after almost a year of injury troubles, Thomas Gloag accomplished it. The young British climber riding for Visma | Lease a Bike bravely attacked on a tough final climb and was rewarded with the stage win in the third stage of the Tour of Czech Republic.

Gloag already showed his form on Friday by finishing 22nd in the difficult second stage, while sacrificing himself for Koen Bouwman and Johannes Staune-Mittet. However, his teammates disappointed, so he tried on his own on Saturday. On the over twelve-kilometer-long and at times steep final climb to Dlouhe Strane, Gloag attacked early. He defended a lead of around twenty seconds for a long time and ultimately held off general classification leader Marc Hirschi, who made a last-ditch effort to close the gap in the final kilometer.

Afterwards, Gloag shared his excitement on the team website. "This is indescribable, I didn't expect this at all. For me it was already a victory that I was at the start here. So for me to take the win here is a huge bonus." Last year, Gloag was hit by a car in August, resulting in a broken kneecap and a long rehabilitation.

The past year had a significant impact on the promising rider. "It has been an incredibly difficult year. Fortunately, I have great people around me who have pulled me through. I want to thank everyone who has been there for me, without them I would not be standing here", continues Gloag, who is not eager for more. "I hope I can show more great things this season."

Wagner: "He could have stayed in the group and seen where he would finish"

Team leader Richard Wagner is in awe of his rider's performance. "When you see how far he had to come back, this is really special. Tom is a fighter. I think it's impressive that he went into the race so aggressively today. He could also have stayed in the group and seen where he would finish. He rode solo for eight kilometres on a steep 12-kilometre climb and didn't keep the least riders behind him. Super strong."