Eneco Tour starts in The Hague

The Eneco Tour, a professional cycling race in the Netherlands, has begun this week as it marks the end of the European cycling season. The event, previously called the Tour of Holland, features multiple stages across the country, with the prologue and first stage already completed.

Prologue victory for Söderqvist

Jakob Söderqvist from the Lidl-Trek team won the prologue, a short 3.1 km race around The Hague. He narrowly beat Wessel Mouris of Unibet Rose Rockets and Christophe Laporte of Visma | Lease a Bike by just one second, securing the race leader's jersey.

Merlier wins first stage

In the first stage of the Eneco Tour, Tim Merlier from Soudal Quick-Step claimed victory after a thrilling sprint finish. He beat Dylan Groenewegen of Unibet Rose Rockets and Gerben Thijssen of Alpecin-Premier Tech, adding his 13th win of the season to his tally.

Leaderboard after first stage

Jakob Söderqvist remains in the lead after the first stage, maintaining his one-second advantage over Mouris and Laporte, who both finished fourth on Tuesday. Tim Merlier, despite not winning the stage, has climbed to fourth place due to time bonuses awarded during the race.