Why Wærenskjold’s Omloop win was even more bizarre than just the sprint suggests

Søren Wærenskjold—who had him down as a contender for Omloop Het Nieuwsblad? Probably not many. Not only was the Norwegian from Uno-X not considered a favorite in this field, but he also wasn’t even supposed to race. It was only decided on Friday that Wærenskjold would start, and what a decision that turned out to be…

The 24-year-old powerhouse laughs when confronted with the fact that, as of Thursday, Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne was the only race on his schedule. "The plan wasn’t to race on Saturday because Kuurne is more of a sprinter’s race. But with a headwind today, it also turned into a sprint, so it feels surreal to be sitting here now. I don’t really have words for it yet—it still needs to sink in. But I’m really happy with this victory, by far the biggest of my career. This is a huge step in the right direction for me."

That makes sense, because even when the Omloop ended in a sprint, the focus was still on riders like Jasper Philipsen, Wout van Aert, and Paul Magnier. However, Wærenskjold was simply stronger—again, in a way that wasn’t part of the plan. "The idea was to go on the left because I was afraid of getting blocked on the right. But an opening appeared, and everything fell into place perfectly. I pushed as hard as I could because I saw Magnier coming, so this is an incredible feeling."

Read more below the photo.

Wærenskjold wasn’t sure for a long time if he would even sprint in Omloop

The fact that Wærenskjold sprinted to victory while still wearing leg warmers made the story even more remarkable. Norwegians aren’t exactly quick to feel the cold, but in his case, it was likely the chaotic finale that left him without the time to remove them. "I was caught behind a crash on the Molenberg, but I didn’t want to waste too much energy chasing. In the end, I had no choice because of the high pace in the final. Luckily, I was still able to sprint in the end."

"It feels a bit strange," the day's winner admitted after the podium ceremony when speaking to other media. "In the sprint, I was just trying not to get blocked—I wanted to focus on my own sprint. I only saw the finish line late, and then I just went for it. Those last meters were tough. It was hard to hold off Magnier, but in the end, everything paid off. I can relax for the rest of the spring—Paris-Roubaix is my next big goal."

Read also

Van Aert? Philipsen? No, powerful Uno-X Norwegian shocks Omloop Het Nieuwsblad with stunning sprint

Stuyven explains what makes Mathieu van der Poel so different: "That doesn't apply to riders of my caliber"

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