After Pavel Bittner’s close second place in yesterday’s opening stage, Team dsm-firmenich PostNL was once again in contention for victory at the Czech Tour today. It was an attacking day over 172.7 kilometers between Zlin and the summit finish in Pustevny. Team dsm-firmenich PostNL performed well all day, staying close to Kevin Vermaerke and covering all the moves that tried to break away. They positioned Kevin well for the final climb, and he made a bold attack with three kilometers to go. Despite giving it his all, he was caught with 600 meters remaining but managed to hold on for fourth place, moving up to the same spot in the provisional GC.
After the stage, Vermaerke said: “It’s great to be back racing after quite a long break. I felt really good and wanted to make an impression today. The boys did an excellent job looking after me throughout the day, as it was quite a hard one. It was a tough stage with many attacks, and I tried to follow when the big guys made their moves. Coming into the final climb, we were still with a big group and facing a headwind. I felt really strong, looked around, and thought I could create a gap. I hoped they might look at each other, and I could hold it, so I went for it with two kilometers to go. Unfortunately, I got caught by three guys in the last 500 meters. I’m a bit disappointed, and tomorrow I just need to be a bit more patient. I know I have a good acceleration at the end, and I’m happy with my shape.”