Time for the Dutch National Championships and it's a pan-flat route with no difficulties. One for the sprinters most likely, and all eyes are on the young Aegon leader Groenewegen, who has ample support. Kip, Te Brake and two van Poppels on different teams the likeliest to stop him!
The break is caught late by a disorganised peloton and Vermeltfoort looks to capitalise, attacking the pack inside the final few kilometres and a big big gap for the eBuddy man! 50 seconds to the peloton already. Beukeboom and Broers tried to follow but couldn't but they're still clear as well.
Broers now drops Beukeboom and has his eyes on Vermeltfoort outside the flamme rouge, 16 seconds between them and 16 back to Beukeboom, who is about to be caught by Jakobsen, who is leading out Vingerling and basically the first guy to try shut this gap. It looks like the late attackers have this!
It looks like the pack are too late, all on even terms but in fact it's Vermeltfoort's teammate van Poppel who leads!
And yes, it's a quite brilliant victory for Coen Vermeltfoort! One of the most combative riders around, I don't think anyone can deny him that a big win was coming, and what a win it was. Intelligently taken, and he is now the National Champion of the Netherlands! He doesn't celebrate for fear someone may catch him, but he should be taking a bow. Broers couldn't quite catch on but is a solid second. Behind Beukeboom is caught by the sprinters
Kip the fastest in the pack, edging out Groenewegen and Danny van Poppel. The former two will be very annoyed the race got away from them like that, but the latter surely only feeling good for his teammate.
Outgoing World Champion Robert Gesink is among the favourites for this Dutch National Championships - he'll be defending the rainbow stripes soon but this isn't a bad backup if he can win it! However his teammate Dennis van Winden and Indosat leader Keizer will be stiff competition, and a whole host of second tier chronomen, not least the first maillot jaune of this year's Tour de France, Lars Boom, will also be hoping for the chrono of a lifetime. In Boom's case, you tend to think he's already had his back in July though!
Some identical triplets using the DuckTales method of differentiating by slightly different outfits
Thomas Dekker would have been a favourite here a few years ago perhaps but now is one of many second-tier hopefuls. However he smashes all other early times out of the park with a time of 1h11'16.
It seems either Dekker was on a good day or van Winden a bad one, as the Berg rider yo-yos around his time through the checkpoints before finally beating him out by 22 seconds.
It seems it was a bad one for van Winden, as a whole host of riders beat their times at checkpoint one and some at the finish in quick succession - van Zandbeek, Beukeboom, Reus, van Emden and most of all Dylan van Baarle!
Dumoulin next to take the hot seat beating van Baarle by 19 seconds. Just defending WC Gesink and NC Keizer to go.
It will be very very very tight... Gesink misses out by a single second!
Can Keizer defend his title, he's been third through every check by mere seconds... and is remarkably third again, by just 2 seconds to Dumoulin and 1 to Gesink. That means Tom Dumoulin is the new Dutch time trial champion!
