Mathieu van der Poel won the opening stage of the Tour de Luxembourg, but after two more strong days, he lost the lead to a strategically savvy Mauri Vansevenant. However, during today’s Stage 4 time trial, the Dutchman reclaimed the top position with a strong performance.

“A time trial is always challenging, and today it was tough until the summit. I managed to maintain my pace, but I lacked the freshness to ride at the speed I wanted until the finish,” van der Poel said in a post-race interview. “I knew the first part would suit me since aerodynamics were less crucial there.” At the first intermediate point, he was just four seconds behind Juan Ayuso, but he lost time in the final segment, finishing 19 seconds behind after being overtaken by a few riders.

“It got fast from there, giving the aero specialists an edge over me. Still, I’m satisfied with my time trial performance, the result, and how I felt on the bike. I’m happy with my recovery,” he acknowledged. After Vansevenant struggled in the time trial, van der Poel leveraged his earlier lead to reclaim the yellow jersey, although he faces stiff competition from four riders, including UAE Team Emirates’ Juan Ayuso and Marc Hirschi, who are within just 10 seconds.

“I can now compete for the classification, although that was never my primary goal,” he admitted. “We’ll see how the race unfolds on Sunday. I’m down three teammates due to illness, but I consider the Tour of Luxembourg a success already.” Tomorrow’s stage returns the riders to Luxembourg City, where the hilly finish will play to his strengths.