Febe Jooris takes fifth in Hulst

On Wednesday evening, the Baloise Ladies Tour kicked off with a short prologue, marking the opening day of a series of races in the Netherlands and Belgium. Hulst provided the picturesque backdrop for the first stage and delivered a great start for AG Insurance – Soudal.

Febe Jooris showcased her form, scoring a strong fifth place finish with an average speed of 48.01 km/h. The prologue covered a distance of 2.7 kilometers, beginning and ending in Hulst.

The stage victory was claimed by Lorena Wiebes, with Fien Van Eynde and Charlotte Kool securing the second and third places, respectively.

"It was a very short prologue, which isn't exactly my specialty, but I'm really excited about this week. I started with good spirits and immediately felt that I was in good form. I could accelerate well into the corners, and taking the corners themselves went quite smoothly. In a time trial of nearly three kilometers, a lot can happen because the times are very close. I was super happy with my time. The course wasn't very technical, but I'm pleased with how I felt and hope we can maintain this momentum with the team. Overall, we performed very well in this prologue. For me, it's an extra special week because all the stages are close to where I live, and therefore close to my family," said a happy Febe afterwards.

“We raced a very short prologue of 2,7 kilometers. The course wasn't very technical, but the riders performed very well. We are now fifth in the standings with Febe and have the young rider's jersey. Maaike is also doing well in the rankings, having finished in eighth place. The coming days will likely end in bunch sprints, and the final GC will be known after Saturday’s time trial. Wednesday’s prologue was more about boosting morale for the time trial and help us focus on achieving a good result in the overall classification. Our riders are motivated to make it a great week”, said sports director Stijn Steels.