Mick van Dijke claimed the first victory of his career with a breakaway win on Stage 3 of the Eneco Tour in the Netherlands. The 26-year-old beat Victor Campenaerts in a two-man uphill sprint.
The stage covered just 110 kilometres on a circuit featuring several short climbs, to be completed five times. However, the wind proved to be the decisive factor, splitting the peloton into several groups. With just under 40 kilometres remaining, Mick bridged across to the existing breakaway, which then comprised seven riders.
By the start of the final lap, only three remained. Campenaerts attacked shortly afterwards, and only Mick was able to follow. The duo reached the foot of the finishing climb with lead of just under 30 seconds over the chasers, where the Dutchman proved to be the stronger rider.
Finn Fisher-Black finished ninth on the stage, 33 seconds behind the winner. He remains third overall, 30 seconds behind the new race leader, Campenaerts. Mick also moved up the general classification and now sits seventh, exactly one minute behind.
“Finally, I’ve managed to get my first win, something I’ve been chasing for five and a half years. I took it easy in the time trial to save some energy for today, and that plan worked out pretty well.
The situation in the race wasn’t entirely straightforward for me. I was in the breakaway, but I couldn’t contribute to the pace because Finn was also fighting for the general classification. It was only when I was alone with Campenaerts that I started to help out a little. In the end, that also helped me in the finale, as I had a bit more left in the tank.”
— Mick van Dijke
