Kruijswijk is the ninth Dutchman in history who finished on the overall podium in Paris. After many top five places, it also the first podium place in a grand tour for the Dutchman. “This is very special. This was my goal and when you finally succeed, you are very happy. For me, this was the best I could do. In today’s stage, it was a matter of paying attention and making it safely across the finish. When I crossed the line, I finally had that feeling of finishing third. It is an amazing feeling. So far, this is my career’s crowning achievement, but I am hungry for more in the coming years. I am very grateful to the team for the past three weeks. Everyone played an important role. Moreover, with four stage wins, it was a more than great Tour.”

Groenewegen was a bit upset by his second place. “The last kilometre was quite hectic. We were not in a perfect position. I started the sprint on the left, but Ewan came around me on the right. That’s a pity, but he was simply the strongest today. For me, it was a strange Tour with the crash in Brussels. I am happy to have won a stage. Everything extra was a bonus. It was a great Tour for us with four stage wins and Steven on the podium.”

Sports director Grischa Niermann was full of praise for the performance of his team. “With four stage wins and a podium place in the Tour, we can be more than happy. Of course we are a bit disappointed that Dylan was narrowly beaten today. It is also a pity that we made it to Paris with only six instead of eight riders. The loss of Wout was a big blow for the team and the incident with Tony was unfortunate. Both are real team players whom we really could have used well in the last week. Overall, we are heading in the right direction with the team and we will try to build and continue like this in the coming years. Of course we have seen things that can be improved, but we will definitely work on them. I am proud of this team and proud of what we have achieved as a team. It is also the first Tour podium for the team. That’s just amazing.”

Manager Richard Plugge concurred. “It is the best Tour in the history of our team. I can only be proud and happy. Our Tour was more than successful, with many ups but also some downs. All the victories are dear to me, but the win in the team time trial stands out. The best thing is that it is not only a performance of the individual riders, but of the entire team. That is perhaps the best thing of all.”