When Yente Biermans dedicated his long-awaited first professional victory at the Muscat Classic by thanking his girlfriend's late father for "always believing in me," he nearly collapsed at the finish line, choking back tears and pointing trembling fingers high in the sky.

It was hard to believe that the Muscat Classic was the first win since Katusha turned pro in 2017, as the pro athlete from Arkea Samsic swept past his rivals in a stunning, confident uphill sprint finish on Friday.

But it is true, and as Biermanns told reporters after the event, he had serious difficulties finding a team for 2023, and while many people lost faith in his talent, his girlfriend's father was never one of them.

"This is for him," the 27-year-old, a two-time runner-up in the Paris-Roubaix Espoir." He said." He passed away last year, and one of the last things he said to me was, "You can win the race."

"So it's very special for me and my family, we had a good race in the U-23s, but we had some hard times in the pros. So this win is for all the people who kept believing in me."

Judging by the difficulty Biermanns had in keeping upright afterwards, it was clear that he gave everything he had for the win, but the team was firmly behind him until the last 500 meters, when he was named to the team's top card in the classics and had to ride alone in a small group sprint. He was supported.

"The flats were easy, but on the climbs the group was on full throttle and I managed to survive. On the last climb I was one of the last. My teammate Michel Ries was shouting, "Go, go, you can do it."

"I managed, I knew I was fast in these finishes, and my teammates put me in perfect position. Anthony Delaplace took me to the last roundabout and then (Jordi) Wallop gave me the perfect wheels." It was a headwind and it was uphill so it was tough, I thought I could have been second or third but no one passed me."

The big hug Biermanns shared with team manager Emmanuel Hubert after the finish was a testament to the team and to the fact that the Muscat Classic was the first event for Arkea Samsic in the 2023 season.

"It was very hard to find a team, it was in the last moments of August or September," said Hubert. So it was stressful, but Arkea showed up and said they believed in me."

"Like I said, there were a lot of people who didn't believe me because it was after six years of not being on the podium. But I was always a good helper and now this team gives me a lot of opportunities." It's nice to be able to give something back to the team."

"It's a very important win for them because it's the first win of the year and this will end the pressure. But I'm confident that with their first win, they will have a good year ahead of them."