Van der Poel misses out on overall victory but satisfied with World Championship preparation in Luxembourg: "Happy with the feeling"

"Unfortunately, I missed out on the win," the eventual runner-up in the final standings commented. "As I've said many times this tour, it's a shame we lost a few guys from the team. At a stage like this, I could have used some support. The local lap here was very tough."

"In the final, we could have controlled things more otherwise," continued the 29-year-old Kapellen man who finished sixth in Luxembourg City. "But I think I showed I had the legs to win, but it's quite difficult to make the difference yourself. Especially when people take turns attacking. You have to gamble a bit then."

In any case, Van der Poel is heading to Zurich with a good feeling, where one week later - on Sunday, Sept. 29 - he will compete in the Cycling World Championship road race. "I'm happy with the feeling," said the defending champion. "The legs were good here in Luxembourg. I also just enjoyed it. On the last steep climb of this stage, I also noticed that I was riding well. I can be happy with that." So Van der Poel can spend the next six days preparing with a good feeling for the power display called the World Championships.