'A ton of weight was lifted off my chest' - Neilson Powless proves his one-day race prowess with Dwars door Vlaanderen win

WAREGEM BELGIUM APRIL 02 Race winner Neilson Powless of The United States and Team EF Education EasyPost reacts after the 79th Dwars Door Vlaanderen 2025 Mens Elite a 1842km one day race from Roeselare to Waregem UCIWT on April 02 2025 in Waregem Belgium Photo by Tim de WaeleGetty Images
Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) reacts with disbelieve at winning 2025 Dwars door Vlaanderen (Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)

When Neilson Powless (EF Education-EasyPost) joined the WorldTour eight years ago, he thought he would be a GC rider. Then with a strong fourth-place performance on the cobbled stage 5 of the 2022 Tour de France, he went confidently into Dwars door Vlaanderen the next year and finished third. The US rider said that changed his whole perspective of the cobbled one-day races.

On his return to the cobbles and climbs at Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday, Powless proved he was indeed a one-day racer. He not only hung in the small army of three Visma-Lease a Bike riders for more than 50 kilometres at the front of the race but then out-sprinted Wout van Aert for the victory.

Jackie Tyson
North American Production editor

Jackie has been involved in professional sports for more than 30 years in news reporting, sports marketing and public relations. She founded Peloton Sports in 1998, a sports marketing and public relations agency, which managed projects for Tour de Georgia, Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and USA Cycling. She also founded Bike Alpharetta Inc, a Georgia non-profit to promote safe cycling. She is proud to have worked in professional baseball for six years - from selling advertising to pulling the tarp for several minor league teams. She has climbed l'Alpe d'Huez three times (not fast). Her favorite road and gravel rides are around horse farms in north Georgia (USA) and around lavender fields in Provence (France), and some mtb rides in Park City, Utah (USA).

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