To describe Olaf Kooij's Giro d'Italia group sprint win in Naples as "hard-fought" would certainly be an understatement.

The absence of a lead-out man due to the abandonment of Christophe Laporte earlier in the week was just one of the challenges Cooey faced on stage 9. The race was a tough one, as punchy riders like Julien Alaphilippe (Sourdal-Quickstep) and Jonathan Narvaez (Ineos Grenadiers) attacked repeatedly on the series of hills in the second half of the race.

Narvaez caught up with them with less than 100 meters to go, and only then did Cooey become convinced that a group sprint was possible.

But the fact that the Dutchman was resourceful and tenacious on a day when several teams with sprinters in the Giro d'Italia (including his own) failed to sprint in a group sprint bodes very well for Cooey.

The Visma-Lease A Bike racer now has an impressive 33 wins to his credit, despite being just 22 years old.

"I was missing Christophe Laporte in the last kilometer, so I had to improvise with Christophe Laporte, who would normally lead out, but I knew (teammate) Tim van Dijk would put me in an ideal position for the last kilometer.

"I knew Narvaez was still in front, but I was just on wheels. But in the last spurt I was able to pass him and also Jonathan Milano."

Couey said that not many fastest teams were convinced that stage 9 would be a sprint race, noting how narrow the gap between a successful Narvaez escape and a failed one was. That was not taking into account the presence of other riders, such as Alaphilippe, who launched dangerous late attacks.

"It was a day in Alpecin Deceuninck's favor.

"Some riders [sprinters] had already left the race and we didn't have enough people to control the final. But sprinting is not only about power, it's also about timing.

Cooey was missing the last man of the sprint train of Vimaris A bikes that would lead him in the last meters in Naples, but during the sprint to victory, the Dutchman also had the Grand Tour leaders like Tadei Pogachar, in this case a sprinter from the UAE, Juan Sebastian Morano's leadout, a rare sight at ringside.

"At first I wasn't sure what he was doing there.

"But they really stretched it out and closed the gap.

Cooey picked up his fifth win of the 2024 season, four of them on the World Tour, after finishing sixth, fourth, and ninth earlier in the week.

"It's really special to win for the first time. After winning a couple of good races, I wanted to take the next step and win a stage in a Grand Tour.

"To win my first Grand Tour is very special. And to win in a difficult race situation like the one Cooey faced on stage 9 of the Giro d'Italia was even more special.