After the finish line of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, deafening cheers and applause could be heard from the inside of the Groupama-FDJ team bus, but rather than celebrating the victory on Belgian soil, the team were celebrating the win of Romain Grégoire in the Faun Ardèche Classic on the other side of France.
The French squad could have been celebrating a double victory, had Stefan Küng's brave late breakaway attempt to defy the overriding narrative of the 2025 Omloop Het Nieuwsblad succeeded.
Instead, the Swiss time trial and Classics star was reeled in two kilometres from the line and what turned out to be the one serious attempt by a rider to defy the headwind and the overwhelming likelihood of a bunch sprint was foiled.
"The course was a kilometre too long, unfortunately," Küng told reporters afterwards, "but I had to try."
"I was alone and attacking like that was always a gamble, but I was where I wanted to be, trying to go for the win."
"I gave it everything, and it didn't work out, but I gave it everything and that's how I want to race throughout the Classics."
Küng paid tribute to his team for their support, saying they had kept him perfectly placed and where he needed to be to try and upset the sprinters' masterplan at the last moment.
"I'm happy and proud with my teammates. We stayed calm because we knew it would play out after the Molenberg and that gave me the chance to attack and go all out."
Looking ahead, he said, even if it hadn't worked out, making his move against all the odds had given him a real confidence boost for the upcoming Classics. As Küng said during the Volta ao Algarve, he had changed his training program over the winter and he had come into Omloop looking for confirmation of his condition. And after his powerful attack eight kilometres from the line in Ninove, Küng certainly found it.
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