Jury spares Visma after motorbike mistake causes chaos at Flèche du Sud

The 19 year old Belgian had taken control of the general classification a day earlier in the queen stage and looked set for another important day of defence on stage 4, a circuit stage starting and finishing in Steinfort. On paper, it was meant to be a more manageable day. In practice, it became anything but.

The peloton had already passed the finish line several times on the local circuit when confusion struck in the closing kilometres. A motorbike ahead of the bunch mistakenly followed the diversion intended for team cars. Part of the peloton followed, including several Visma Lease a Bike riders.

For a team that had dominated the race until then, it was a costly moment. Visma had already won two stages with Matthew Brennan before Van Kerckhove added a climbing victory of his own. A fourth consecutive stage win suddenly disappeared from view.

“We lost a chance to win the stage because of this,” sports director Gaëtan Pons said afterwards.

The bigger concern was the overall classification. With Van Kerckhove among those affected, Visma risked losing the leader’s jersey in bizarre circumstances. After discussions with the race jury, however, the riders were handed the same time for the general classification. That decision allowed Van Kerckhove to keep yellow going into the final day.

The margin remains narrow. The young Belgian will begin the last stage with only five seconds in hand, meaning Visma still have work to do if they want to finish the job.

“The final stage promises to be very nervous again,” Pons said. “Especially the technical finale, with many corners, can create extra stress in the peloton. Within the team, the focus is fully on securing the general classification with the young Belgian.”