«I'm very happy, there's no better way to start the season than with a win. It's nice to see that all the hard work over the winter is paying off. I always wanted to be aggressive today on the climb in the middle of the race. I wanted to seize an opportunity. There was a lot of wind afterwards. So it was a very difficult day and I was very happy to have Paul (Lapeira) and Nico (Prodhomme) with me at the front of the race. We worked well to keep the peloton at bay. The collaboration within the breakaway wasn't very good anymore, and I managed to get away with Tim Wellens. In the end, I came away on the last climb after racing at the front, and I couldn't be happier. Now I hope to keep up the momentum and race with my heart, with my head too, and do my best.»