This race embodies the pure philosophy of Flemish cycling.
Look at its record and the podiums to truly understand how tough this race is.
Wedged between the Tour of Flanders and Paris–Roubaix, it used to be held on Wednesday, allowing teams to keep the pressure on between the two Sunday Monuments.
In 2011, the UCI reshaped its calendar to give it even greater prestige. Thank you.
Around 250 km; it’s now called “In Flanders Fields,” and for the next 10 years the start will be in Middelkerke on the Belgian coast.
The route is Franco-Belgian, crossing the wind-battered farming plains of Flanders, with false flats and March squalls.
Tackling a dozen ‘bergs’ truly makes this an explosive race of attrition. (Cassel, Catsberg, Monteberg, Kemmelberg,…) The cobblestones themselves account for less than 6 km, but they are all uphill, including the famous Kemmelberg with its 22% gradient!
If you can withstand the early crosswind splits and the thinning-out over the first 100 kilometers, then maybe you’ll be well placed to make the right move in the finale.
It’s never about luck here—it’s about knowing how to ride in a bunch, sensing the right move, reading the weather, positioning, and scanning faces to gauge your rivals.
Cycling schools absolutely must show this race and the positioning techniques for crosswinds, headwinds, or tailwinds… The pre-race briefing is crucial to know where teams will turn the screw.
A split opened by your rivals—if you’re poorly positioned—means the effort just to avoid getting dropped will send the acid soaring, and chasing back to the bunch will burn matches you’ll need for the finale. Helicopter shots show these dynamics with an incredible TV effect.
Here, it’s all about the strongmen—no room for improvisation.
Likewise, by analogy with World War I (WW1), whose front line you’re constantly crossing, this is a splendid, colorful region, rich in centuries-old farms—but with bad weather (wind, rain, hail), that beauty turns once again into hostile, uncertain territory.
Add roads with sometimes unpredictable surfaces, and you’re guaranteed a great spectacle of cycling warriors. The finale often lets you “take out” your rivals for a sprint from a reduced group.
It’s war—but it’s the kind we love. Chapeau, gentlemen.
