WorldTour cycling is back in Belgium. The peloton had the chance to warm up a bit – or more accurately, they got very cold – at the Ronde van Brugge on Thursday, and next they will line up in Wevelgem for the new In Flanders Fields-In Wevelgem (previously Gent-Wevelgem).
It's a race that can go any which way, with cobbled climbs, potential crosswinds and a flat finish; it's been won by sprinters, solo riders, or gutsy breakaways, but for the last two years the sprinters have prevailed. And not just any sprinter, the best sprinter on two wheels: Lorena Wiebes.
Wiebes returns this year with a confident SD Worx-Protime squad, but more teams are trying to outsmart the Dutch powerhouse. At the one-day Classics so far, we've seen UAE Team ADQ and FDJ United-Suez try new tactics to take the SD Worx-Protime star down, and on Sunday, a varied start list promises some dynamic racing.
The Basics
When: Sunday, March 29 @ 14:30 CET (expected finish 17:45 CEST/11:45 EDT/+1 3:45 AEDT)
Where: Wevelgem to Wevelgem (135.2 km)
Live coverage: 🇦🇺 SBS @ +1 day 1:40 AEDT, 🇪🇺 HBOMax @ 15:40 CEST, 🇬🇧TNT/Discovery+ @ 14:40 BST, 🇺🇸🇨🇦 FloBikes @ 6:40 PDT
Joe Lindsey
The favourites
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: Lorena Wiebes
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️: Elisa Balsamo, Ally Wollaston
⭐️⭐️⭐️: Charlotte Kool, Shari Bossuyt, Elisa Longo Borghini, Franziska Koch
⭐️⭐️: Cat Ferguson, Lara Gillespie
⭐️: Pfeiffer Georgi, Zoe Backstedt, Nienke Veenhoven
Honourable mentions: Carys Lloyd, Chiara Consonni, Ruby Roseman-Gannon, Eleonora Gasparrini
A full startlist is available here.
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