What. A. Star. Thibau Nys dominates punchy finale in Poland: Kelderman impresses with third place

Thibau Nys won the third stage of the Tour of Poland, having already claimed the opening stage. On a new punchy finish, it looked like it might be close, but he proved to be the best once again. Diego Ulissi finished second, Wilco Kelderman secured a strong third place, while teammate Jonas Vingegaard retained the leader’s jersey.

Following Tim Wellens' impressive time trial victory on Tuesday, the Tour of Poland continued on Wednesday through the hills of southwestern Poland. Vingegaard had claimed the yellow jersey in that time trial and faced the task of defending it in the explosive stage to Prudnik. The 195 kilometers of the stage involved significant elevation changes, making it challenging for Visma | Lease a Bike to control the race. Even before the stage truly began — in the neutral zone — unfortunate Wilco Kelderman from that team hit the pavement again, though fortunately without serious consequences.

Three brave riders went on the attack early: local rider Michal Paluta (Polish National Team), Jan Maas (Jayco-AlUla), and Nicolas Debeaumarché (Cofidis). They formed a three-man breakaway group in the stage starting from Wałbrzych, a well-known city in the green region of Lower Silesia. Thibau Nys was expected to perform well, so it was logical that Lidl-Trek led the chase in the peloton. Who else but El Tractor Tim Declercq was leading the charge!

However, in this hilly stage, several other riders were eager to join the break. They succeeded in bridging the gap to the leading trio, creating a ten-man breakaway group. Despite their efforts, this front group didn’t have strong prospects, as the peloton, particularly led by Visma | Lease a Bike and dsm-firmenich PostNL, was in hot pursuit.

Kelderman secures another top ten finish, but Nys once again dominates and wins

With nineteen kilometers to go, the breakaway riders were caught, and it was soon the leader Vingegaard who tried to break away. Although he didn’t succeed immediately, it marked the start of the real action. The killer bees set the pace towards the tricky final climb (approximately one kilometer at an average gradient of eight percent, with sections up to fourteen percent!), where the race was expected to explode.

Visma | Lease a Bike controlled the pace for a long time, keeping their leaders well-positioned at the front. The Lidl-Trek team, especially Mads Pedersen, also performed excellently, allowing Nys to be positioned ideally. The key moment came when the final climb came into view, almost precisely marking the start of the ascent. The peloton had already thinned out significantly, and after the initial acceleration from Matej Mohoric, it was even more reduced.

However, waiting was the best strategy for the elite group. It was only 300 meters from the finish that a serious attack was launched. Kelderman tried, but once again, it was Nys who emerged from the pack like a jack-in-the-box and claimed the victory. What a class act! Ulissi finished second, and Kelderman took a commendable third place.

Results stage 3 Tour of Poland 2024

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