Shirin van Anrooij ultimately finished fourth in the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. The Dutch rider from Lidl-Trek definitively left behind a troublesome cyclo-cross winter and, along with her teammate Elisa Longo Borghini, put serious pressure on SD Worx-ProTime.
"The goal was to win, especially since we had two riders in front," Van Anrooij said afterwards. "That was only possible by attacking, but we couldn't create a big gap. The race was very tough, but at the same time, we are very satisfied that we were still present with two riders in the deep finale. It gives confidence for the rest of the classics season."
"Beforehand, I was quite unsure after that troublesome cyclo-cross winter, but now I can only be satisfied. We wanted to make it a very tough race, and we succeeded, so I have a lot of confidence in the team."