Wilco KELDERMAN is the obvious favourite to wear the Dutch colours in 2024; despite his less that stellar results throughout the season he is by far the best puncheur from his country. Unfortunately, this means that everybody else will be watching him and he doesn't have any teammates to chase down attacks. Looking to defend his title will be Floris GERTS, who has the support of Lennard HOFSTEDE and Antwan TOLHOEK. The danger of being a solo rider should be obvious looking at that trio, as KELDERMAN can not afford to leave any of them unchecked. Mathieu VAN DER POEL and Tom Jelte SLAGTER are the other puncheurs that pose a threat. However, one can never discount the true climbers: Dan OLIVIER and Sam OOMEN, for all they prefer longer climbs, are no slouches even on these shorter slopes.
The large teams aren't afraid to make the most of the advantage in numbers, we're only on the first climb and already the attacks are flying in. Bas VAN DER KOOIJ kicks things off. Although he doesn't quite have the strength to escape, his attack provides a platform for Maurits LAMMERTINK to come through and create a gap. KELDERMAN is attentive, as nobody else is willing to follow the move. Bringing back VAN DER KOOIJ was sufficient though; his directeur sportif orders him to drag the attackers back into the fold.
Rabobank want to control this race from start to finish. Milan VADER absolutely throws himself up the second climb of the day. VAN DER KOOIJ and GERTS are in his wheeltracks, but then there is a gap! SLAGTER, OLIVIER and OOMEN are all at the front of the chasing pack, but they are all looking around for KELDERMAN. He'd been looking to rest in the middle of the peloton and by the time he makes it to the front the gap is at nearly 45".
With the gap holding steady KELDERMAN decided it was time to start playing mind games. If he took on all the responsibility for bringing this attack back then he wouldn't have anything left for the finish: he sat up. OLIVIER, seeing his own hopes of taking the tricolour going up in smoke, ordered his domestiques to the front instead. The heavy pace and the harsh winds started to create splits in the peloton, no major favourites losing out just yet but HOFSTEDE and TOLHOEK have been left behind. That is bad news for GERTS, who is caught at the base of the next climb.
I'm not so sure about this manoeuvre, the pace slowed enough for the groups to begin coming back together, which has prompted Ide SCHELLING to launch an attack. I'm just not sure that the flat is the right place to go for it... Oscar RIESEBEEK and Kevin INKELAAR are also interested in joing in on the fun. Unfortunately they are closely marked by VADER and everybody comes in to the penultimate climb together.
No sooner do I say that then another attack is made. This time it is Dylan VAN BAARLE spearheading the move. Joining him are Pascal EENKHOORN and Lars VAN DEN BERG. The fact that the former is a solid enough rouleur to keep the chasing pack at bay makes this a dangerous move. Mick VAN DIJKE is the first responder; have the big teams forgetten that KELDERMAN is here?
Unfortunately for VAN BAARLE, VAN DIJKE is simply a better climber than he is. If he had attacked on a smaller bump then he might have succeeded in breaking the elastic but on this longer slope of 2.5km @ ~8% he just doesn't have the fortitude. There are consequences to his acceleration though: a group has split off the front! Behind them GERTS, surrounded by domestiques, forms the core of a chasing group. Joining him are OLIVIER, VAN DER POEL and LAMMERTINK.
VAN DER POEL's excellent bike-handling skills mean that the leading groups merge back together on the descent. Sensing an opportunity, Lars VAN DER HAAR strikes. Although his main strengths are on the cobblestones, his success on that terrain can be partially accredited to his capability as rouleur. He creates a small gap over the chase before RIESEBEEK, VAN BAARLE, SLAGTER and LAMMERTINK bridge across. EENKHORN doesn't want to miss out on this move, but he is dragging the rest of the chasers along with him, somebody needs to tell him to stop before he ruins all of his teammate's hard work!
EENKHORN does eventually come to his senses and, just as VAN DER KOOIJ reels the escapees back in, VAN DER HAAR lights things up again. Despite having five riders in the chasing group, Rabobank leave it to SLAGTER to take the front. As he turns on to the final climb, 1.2km @ 6% all that stands between him and victory, VAN DER HAAR has a gap of 15" over the chasers.
VAN DER POEL launches first. VAN DER HAAR is already at the limit so when the group behind accelerates his gap disappears within moments. OOMEN and OLIVIER are the next to move, but their lack of punch is on full display as VAN DER POEL rapidly gets a bikelength of distance. KELDERMAN splits the pair, as he comes from further back to react to this final move. GERTS is stuck in traffic.
With only 500 metres remaining it looks as though it will be between KELDERMAN and VAN DER POEL. Although his early acceleration gave the latter some space to work with, the former has managed to claw some of it back. It could be close even if both manage to make it all the way to the finish. If one of them cracks, the other will win. If both do, then OOMEN will be in the drivers seat but GERTS and Moreno HOFLAND are rapidly approaching his position.
KELDERMAN is done. VAN DER POEL is done. OOMEN never really got going. HOFLAND's pace has petered out. It is GERTS, whose team has given so much to put their leader in this position, that has drawn himself level with VAN DER POEL. It is GERTS who has the most momentum. it is GERTS who is going to win the Dutch RR NC for the second year in a row.
RESULTS
1
Floris Gerts
Rabobank
1h16'17
2
Mathieu Van der Poel
Lidl Cycling
s.t.
3
Wilco Kelderman
Colombini Cycling
s.t.
4
Sam Oomen
Lierse SK - Pizza Ullo
s.t.
5
Moreno Hofland
Moser - Sygic
s.t.
6
Daan Olivier
Fastned
s.t.
7
Antwan Tolhoek
Rabobank
s.t.
8
Oscar Riesebeek
Lampre - Pinarello
s.t.
9
Ide Schelling
Team Würth MODYF
s.t.
10
Mick Van Dijkeᵘ²³
Sony - Force India
s.t.
11
Lars Van den Berg
Moser - Sygic
s.t.
12
Milan Vader
Rabobank
s.t.
13
Lars Van der Haar
Evonik - ELKO
s.t.
14
Maurits Lammertink
Ekoi - Le Creuset
s.t.
15
Tom Jelte Slagter
Minions
s.t.
16
Lennard Hofstede
Rabobank
s.t.
17
Dylan Van Baarle
King Power
s.t.
18
Pascal Eenkhoorn
Evonik - ELKO
s.t.
19
Dylan Groenewegen
Fastned
s.t.
20
Bas Van der Kooij
Rabobank
s.t.
21
Arvid De Kleijn
Fastned
39
22
Gijs Leemreize
Sony - Force India
s.t.
23
Piotr Havik
Sony - Force India
s.t.
24
Bram Welten
Zwift Pro Cycling
s.t.
25
Thymen Arensman
Grieg-Maersk
s.t.
26
Joris Nieuwenhuis
Team Puma - SAP
s.t.
27
Julius Van den Berg
Rabobank
s.t.
28
Cees Bol
Jura GIANTS
s.t.
29
Timo Roosen
Rabobank
s.t.
30
Danny Van Poppel
Rabobank
s.t.
31
Marten Kooistra
Sony - Force India
s.t.
32
Michael Vingerling
Fastned
+ 1'28
33
David Dekker
Lidl Cycling
s.t.
34
Taco Van der Hoorn
Fastned
s.t.
35
Nils Eekhoff
Grieg-Maersk
+ 1'37
36
Kevin Inkelaar
DuckDuckGo - Everesting
s.t.
37
Tim Ariesen
Aker - MOT
s.t.
38
Daan Hoole
Assa Abloy
s.t.
39
Steven Lammertink
Cedevita
s.t.
40
Olav Kooijᵘ²³
Lampre - Pinarello
s.t.
41
Jasper Bovenhuis
Fastned
s.t.
42
Tom Dumoulin
Team Würth MODYF
s.t.
43
Mike Teunissen
Gazelle
s.t.
44
Rick Pluimersᵘ²³
Fastned
s.t.
45
Tim Van Dijkeᵘ²³
Sony - Force India
s.t.
46
Joren Bloem
Rabobank
s.t.
47
Marijn Van Den Berg
Rabobank
+ 2'05
48
Roel van Sintmaartensdijkᵘ²³
Fastned
+ 2'15
______________________________________________
DUTCH TIMETRIAL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Mick VAN DIJKE was an early pace setter with a time of 1h02'37". He passed the hapless Rick PLUIMERS before they even made it to the second checkpoint. This was enough to make him the (unofficial) Dutch RR and TT U23 national champion.
As the breeze dropped away into nothingness, Thymen ARENSMAN became the first challenger for the hotseat. After just 22 kilometres he had already built a lead of 11". Indeed he stormed through to a time of 1h02'08", although he failed to gain any time in the final third.
We had some intrateam action as EEKHOFF came through to displace ARENSMAN from the top of the charts. 6" faster in the first sector and an additional 4" in the second finally led to a time of 1h01'47". Unfortunately he wouldn't even make it to the hotseat.
That's because following immediately behind him were the big favourites. Sam OOMEN was marginally faster, but Tom DUMOULIN and Dylan VAN BAARLE stepped things up to another level. They came through with identical times of 1h00'34", with the latter judged ahead by milliseconds.
Last, but certainly not least, the favourite: Steven LAMMERTINK. He was faster throughout the entire parcour, cracking the one hour mark with a time of 59'49", and securing the Dutch TT NC from the absent Martijn KEIZER.
DUTCH ROAD RACE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP 
