We have a winner!

Late on Wednesday evening, a small group of family, and friends gathered outside Cafe de Proloog eagerly awaiting the arrival of a rider.

Four days, thirteen hours, and eight minutes after leaving Amerongen on Saturday, Jasmijn Muller (cap 2), rode into the square. Jasmijn is the winner of the 2020 edition of the Race Around the Netherlands.

This is Jasmijn's second attempt at the race, having started last year before having to scratch around the 1100km mark in Noordwijk. At the time of her scratch in 2019, Jasmijn was in a strong position in the top five overall. Her scratch was a shock to many, and taught us all the important lesson: In order to finish first, first you have to finish. When interviewed at the IJmuiden ferry on Monday, Jasmijn had said that she was looking forward to seeing the rest of the route, especially the dunes around Scheveningen. As she removed her helmet and gloves, she joked "It's quite nice the other half". Before following up with "I liked the hills in Limburg."

Jasmijn is only the 3rd woman to complete the full distance of Race Around the Netherlands, and her time takes 77 hours off the previous fastest time set last year by Shiela Woollam (7D // 18H // 8M).

She made two sleep stops over the course of the 1907km race. The first for approximately 4 hours in Amsterdam, and her second in Stein, Limburg. At the later she forgot to set her alarm and slept for 6 hours. This extra time allowed a number of riders to slip past her, resulting in Jasmijn being the 11th rider over all to finish.

Near the town of Hoogvliet (1210km), Jasmijn encountered construction work that has closed the bridge on the route for 3 nights, this resulted in a lengthy detour to get back on route, costing her significiant time.

Jasmijn had been battling a slow puncture in her rear tyre that meant she had to stop every few hours to put more air in. In Goes, Zeeland, she was able to find a bike shop that was able to help her find and plug the hole. This was the only mechanical issue she had over the whole route.

Congratulations Jasmijn, an awesome and inspiring ride.