ProTeam Arnaud De Lie wins La Polynormande

Arnaud De Lie has won La Polynormande (Fra/1.1). The 21-year-old Belgian stayed ahead of the French Valentin Ferron and Jordan Jegat in the sprint. For De Lie it’s his sixth victory of the season.

”I am very happy with this victory”, says De Lie. “Especially after such a tough final with several attacks. I started this morning with a lot of ambition, but it was certainly not an easy task to win today. The escapees went very fast, the team had to pull hard to catch them back, but luckily my teammates did a perfect job.”

“In the final it was still very hard. Especially when Guillaume Martin accelerated uphill, I had a hard time and had to dig deep to keep up. But I managed to stay in the wheel and go for the victory. In the final I had with Cedric Beullens strong teammate by my side. He followed an attack by some riders in the end and I could stay relaxed in the wheel of the others in a second group. Cedric didn't cooperate at the front and I was able to save my strength in the second group. In the end we came very close. I launched my sprint at about 300 meters, passed the other guys and took the win. "

De Lie had a special victory sign. "That was a joke with my teammates. I have a small beard here in France. Yesterday they laughed with me and challenged me. If I won, I would refer to the beard today. And I did," he laughs.

For De Lie it's his sixth victory of the season. Tuesday he will start in Tour of Leuven (Memorial Jef Scherens), again with the ambition to win.  

Pictures: Cassandra Donne for Lotto Dstny