Schlagwort-Archive: La Fléche Wallonne

Fleche Wallone 2024 146km Frauen

Eintagsrennen, Ergebnisse, Frauenradsport, Frühjahrskassiker, Strassenrennen, , , , , ,


Plomi Foto


Foto von HERBERT MOOS

Few victories are as exciting and as meaningful as the one Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM Racing) scored today in the 27th edition of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes. The Polish rider defeated 2023 winner Demi Vollering (Team SD Worx-ProTime) and Italian national champion Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek) in the final climb to the Mur de Huy to finally net her first win after a 1770-day drought. It has taken her 53rd top5 placings, including a 2nd position on the 2021 edition of this very race, to finally raise her arms in victory again. ‘Kasia’ exploded in tears after the finish line, leaving an emotional lesson: she who perseveres, succeeds.

139 riders started the 27th edition of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes at 14:02 from Huy’s Grand-Place, taking on a 146-kilometre course to finish atop the iconic Mur de Huy. A rain shower turned into a snow fall as temperatures froze down to 5ºC, creating some hard weather conditions that would prove impactful in the unfolding of the race. Arkéa-Samsic’s Maaike Coljé was the first to abandon following a crash in the neutral zone. No breakaway went clear as the Côte de Gives (km 7,1 – 2,1 km at 5,5%) and Côte de Courrière (km 37,6 – 1,4 km at 7,1%) were ridden and left behind, creating some damage as pre-race favorites like Mavi García (Liv-AlUla-Jayco) struggled to keep up with the peloton’s pace.

A three-woman breakaway set the tone
Sara Martín (Movistar Team), Julie Van de Velde (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) and Elena Hartmann (Roland) attacked and went clear at kilometer 40, clocking a 1’40” advantage on the pack atop the Côte d’Evrehailles (km 53,4). The weather got better, from rainy and cold to just cloudy, as 89 kilometres into the race their gap topped at 4’25”, with Visma | Lease a Bike at the helm in the bunch. It was in the Côte d’Ereffe (km 101,4 – 2,1 km at 5%) that the peloton woke up. FDJ-SUEZ’s Grace Brown and Fenix-Deceuninck’s Pauline Rooijakkers took off and crested the climb 3’35” behind the front trio, with the peloton 10 seconds further back.

Everything up for grabs at the Mur de Huy
The first climb to the Mur de Huy (km 114,3 – 1,3 km at 9,6%) proved too demanding for Hartmann, who left Van de Velde and Martín alone at the head of the race. Across the summit, they had 2’09” on Brown and Rooijakkers and 2’32” on a 50-strong peloton led by SD Worx-ProTime. The chasing duo was reeled in with 17 kilometres to go by a peloton that was just 1’20” behind the head of the race at that point following a coordinated effort by Canyon//SRAM and the aforementioned SD Worx-ProTime. Several attacks happened up the Côte d’Ereffe (km 133,1 – 2,1 km at 5%) as the front duo was swept up and a 50-strong group was left at the head of the race. Riejanne Markus (Visma | Lease a Bike) put on a solo attack with 5 kilometres to go that stuck until the foot of the Mur de Huy. She was caught with 700 meters to go by Demi Vollering (SD Worx-ProTime), who marshalled the main group until Niewiadoma’s final, winning acceleration 200 meters from the finish.


Foto von HERBERT MOOS

1 KATARZYNA NIEWIADOMA 71 CANYON//SRAM RACING 03h 55′ 29“
2 DEMI VOLLERING 1 TEAM SD WORX – PROTIME 03h 55′ 31“ + 00h 00′ 02“
3 ELISA LONGO BORGHINI 24 LIDL – TREK 03h 55′ 33“ + 00h 00′ 04“
4 EVITA MUZIC 45 FDJ-SUEZ 03h 55′ 36“ + 00h 00′ 07“
5 ASHLEIGH MOOLMAN PASIO 51 AG INSURANCE – SOUDAL TEAM 03h 55′ 40“ + 00h 00′ 11“
6 PAULIENA ROOIJAKKERS 85 FENIX-DECEUNINCK 03h 55′ 44“ + 00h 00′ 15“
7 JULIETTE LABOUS 91 TEAM DSM-FIRMENICH POSTNL 03h 55′ 48“ + 00h 00′ 19“
8 FEM VAN EMPEL 121 TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE 03h 55′ 53“ + 00h 00′ 24“
9 MARTA CAVALLI 41 FDJ-SUEZ 03h 55′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 27“
10 ANE SANTESTEBAN GONZALEZ 211 LABORAL KUTXA – FUNDACION EUSKADI 03h 55′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 27“
11 GRETA MARTURANO 83 FENIX-DECEUNINCK 03h 55′ 59“ + 00h 00′ 30“ – –
12 OLIVIA BARIL 11 MOVISTAR TEAM 03h 56′ 01“ + 00h 00′ 32“ – –
13 INGVILD GÅSKJENN 33 LIV-ALULA-JAYCO 03h 56′ 03“ + 00h 00′ 34“ – –
14 KATRINE AALERUD 112 UNO-X MOBILITY 03h 56′ 04“ + 00h 00′ 35“ – –
15 LOTTE KOPECKY 5 TEAM SD WORX – PROTIME 03h 56′ 04“ + 00h 00′ 35“ – –
16 MAREILLE MEIJERING 14 MOVISTAR TEAM 03h 56′ 04“ + 00h 00′ 35“ – –
17 RIEJANNE MARKUS 123 TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE 03h 56′ 04“ + 00h 00′ 35“ – –
18 YARA KASTELIJN 81 FENIX-DECEUNINCK 03h 56′ 12“ + 00h 00′ 43“ – –
19 ALENA IVANCHENKO 66 UAE TEAM ADQ 03h 56′ 12“ + 00h 00′ 43“ – –
20 HENRIETTA CHRISTIE 171 HUMAN POWERED HEALTH 03h 56′ 14“ + 00h 00′ 45“

Fleche Wallone 2024 199km Männer

Eintagsrennen, Ergebnisse, Frühjahrskassiker, Strassenrennen, Weltcup und Klassiker, , , , ,


Plomi Foto


Foto von HERBERT MOOS

Stephen Williams (Israel – Premier Tech) took victory in the 2024 La Flèche Wallonne, making history by becoming the first British winner of the race, with a brilliantly timed finish on the fourth climb of the Mur de Huy. After a race which saw sunshine, torrential rain and even snow, Kévin Vauquelin (Arkea – B&B Hotels) and Maxim Van Gils (Lotto Dstny) were also on the podium, after crossing the finish line in second and third respectively, closely behind the victorious Williams.

A 30th start in Charleroi
174 riders took the start of the 88th edition of the Flèche Wallonne, as Charleroi hosted the start of the race for the 30th time. The 2024 midweek Ardennes classic marked the 40th finish of La Flèche Wallonne atop the Mur de Huy, with the peloton taking on the brutal climb of the famous Chemin des Chapelles on four occasions for the first time ever. Ben Hermans (Cofidis) was finally unable to take the start, in what would have been his 12th participation at Flèche Wallonne, having achieved his best result of 14th on his debut in 2009.

Six riders clear at the front
At km 11 Igor Chzhan (Astana) and Johan Meens (Bingoal WB) joined the four riders already at the front, Lilian Calmejane (Intermarché-Wanty), Alan Jousseaume (TotalEnergies), James Whelan (Q.365) and Txomin Juaristi (Euskaltel-Euskadi), who had been the first attacker in the first kilometre. Aaron Van der Beken (Bingoal WB) tried to go with Meens in the chase to the front group but finally dropped back. Juaristi was also the first rider to reach the summit of Côte d’Yvoir at km 42.7 and the six man breakaway had established an advantage of 4’30“ over the peloton after 50 km of racing.

Difficult weather conditions
The breakaway riders were absolutely drenched by torrential rain as they rode into Huy for the first time and there was even some snowfall. Whelan struggled for several minutes to get his jacket on correctly, but finally managed to do so before the Mur de Huy, although he briefly lost some ground on the other five in the break. As the peloton reached the top of the Mur de Huy for the first of four climbs of this famous ascent, they reduced the gap to the breakaway to 2’. That first ascent of the Mur saw a group of several riders dropped by the peloton, including Aleksandr Vlasov (BORA – hansgrohe) and Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal Quick-Step). After the first Mur de Huy climb Jousseaume was back in the peloton after more than 100km in the breakaway, whilst Dylan Teuns (Israel – Premier Tech), the winner of the 2022 edition, was dropped by the peloton with 75km to go.

Mur de Huy takes its toll
A reduced breakaway of Calmejane, Meens and Juaristi were swallowed up by the bunch, before the riders tackled the Mur de Huuy for the second time. This time it was the big favourites who lost contact with the main peloton: Marc Hirschi, Tom Pidcock, Mattias Skjelmose and David Gaudu were excluded from the group. Valentin Madouas, who took the lead at the Mur summit (km 135.3), was one of the most aggressive, but Soren Kragh Andersen (Alpecin – Deceuninck) launched into a solo attack 60 km from the finish. With 46km of racing to go there were only around 30 riders left in the peloton and they were 1’ behind the solo race leader Kragh Andersen. Meanwhile Markus Hoelgaard (Uno-X Mobility) briefly got 20″ in front of the bunch trying to chase down Kragh Andersen, but his attempt to do so did not last long.

Amazing effort by Kragh Andersen
On the penultimate climb of the Mur Kragh Andersen crossed the summit 1’ ahead of Santiago Buitrago (Bahrain – Victorious) and Richard Carapaz (EF Education – EasyPost), 1’05“ ahead of the peloton led by Kevin Vauquelin (Arkéa – B&B Hotels). Israel – Premier Tech’s Stephen Williams went on the offensive with 28km to go, chasing Kragh Andersen, then a quartet composed of Maxim Van Gils (Lotto Dstny), Vauquelin, Buitrago and Carapaz joined Williams in the chase. Those five chasers were caught by the peloton 17 km from the finish. Kragh Andersen was in turn caught by the peloton on the final Côte d’Ereffe climb with just under 15 km to go, having spent 46 km solo at the front of the race.

Williams is the winner
The 2024 winner Williams timed a late attack perfectly and ultimately shot across the finish line at the top one of the hardest climbs in pro cycling after 198.6km of racing with his historic performance, getting the better of a strong group of 31 riders who battled it out on the Mur de Huy. Vauquelin was so close to the victory, as Williams was just too strong for him in the final metres, with Van Gils in third, followed over the line by Benoit Cosnefroy in fourth and Buitrago in fifth.


Foto von HERBERT MOOS

1 STEPHEN WILLIAMS 37 ISRAEL – PREMIER TECH 04h 40′ 24“
2 KÉVIN VAUQUELIN 81 ARKEA-B&B HOTELS 04h 40′ 24“
3 MAXIM VAN GILS 61 LOTTO DSTNY 04h 40′ 27“ + 00h 00′ 03“
4 BENOIT COSNEFROY 191 DECATHLON AG2R LA MONDIALE TEAM 04h 40′ 27“ + 00h 00′ 03“
5 SANTIAGO BUITRAGO 103 BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 04h 40′ 27“ + 00h 00′ 03“
6 TOBIAS HALLAND JOHANNESSEN 111 UNO-X MOBILITY 04h 40′ 34“ + 00h 00′ 10“
7 ROMAIN GREGOIRE 163 GROUPAMA-FDJ 04h 40′ 34“ + 00h 00′ 10“
9 TIESJ BENOOT 51 TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE 04h 40′ 34“ + 00h 00′ 10“
10 GUILLAUME MARTIN 46 COFIDIS 04h 40′ 34“ + 00h 00′ 10“
11 CLÉMENT CHAMPOUSSIN 83 ARKEA-B&B HOTELS 04h 40′ 40“ + 00h 00′ 16“
12 TOMS SKUJINS 17 LIDL-TREK 04h 40′ 42“ + 00h 00′ 18“
13 RICHARD CARAPAZ 141 EF EDUCATION – EASYPOST 04h 40′ 44“ + 00h 00′ 20“
14 JORDAN JEGAT 185 TOTALENERGIES 04h 40′ 47“ + 00h 00′ 23“
15 VALENTIN MADOUAS 164 GROUPAMA-FDJ 04h 40′ 48“ + 00h 00′ 24“
16 ILAN VAN WILDER 26 SOUDAL QUICK-STEP 04h 40′ 48“ + 00h 00′ 24“
17 ODD CHRISTIAN EIKING 113 UNO-X MOBILITY 04h 40′ 48“ + 00h 00′ 24“
18 AXEL LAURANCE 131 ALPECIN-DECEUNINCK 04h 40′ 48“ + 00h 00′ 24“
19 QUINTEN HERMANS 132 ALPECIN-DECEUNINCK 04h 40′ 54“ + 00h 00′ 30“
20 TIM VAN DIJKE 56 TEAM VISMA | LEASE A BIKE 04h 40′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 32“
21 ENZO LEIJNSE 74 TEAM DSM-FIRMENICH POSTNL 04h 40′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 32“
22 BRUNO ARMIRAIL 192 DECATHLON AG2R LA MONDIALE TEAM 04h 40′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 32“
23 ANDREAS LEKNESSUND 117 UNO-X MOBILITY 04h 46′ 31“ + 00h 06′ 07“
24 DAVIDE FORMOLO 95 MOVISTAR TEAM 04h 41′ 00“ + 00h 00′ 36“
25 FABIEN DOUBEY 182 TOTALENERGIES 04h 41′ 05“ + 00h 00′ 41“
26 ROGER ADRIA OLIVERAS 212 BORA – HANSGROHE 04h 41′ 07“ + 00h 00′ 43“

2024 ARDENNES CLASSICS:

Eintagsrennen, Strassenrennen, Vorschau, Weltcup und Klassiker, , ,

Key points:
 As a special „treat“ for the 40th finish of La Flèche Wallonne atop the Mur de Huy, the peloton will tackle the brutal ascent of the Chemin des Chapelles on four occasions for the very first time. Another major change to the programme for Wednesday, 17 April is that the women will start in the early afternoon and finish an hour after the men at the end of an extended course (143.5 km).

 The programme for Sunday, 21 April has also been inverted. Remco Evenepoel and his rivals will lead the vanguard to the Ardent City for the 110th edition of Liège–Bastogne–Liège. A while later, the women will follow the same course from Bastogne to Liège (147.6 km), clashing on climbs such as the Côte de Cornémont, which comes between La Redoute and the Côte des Forges.
 25 squads —including four wildcard teams— of seven riders each will make up the 175-strong pelotons of La Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège, while 144 cyclists representing 24 outfits will get to grips with La Flèche Wallonne Femmes and Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes.

Once a year, the roads of the Province of Liège lead to Huy and Liège and rekindle the fire of the Ardennes classics, a sequence of races that have gone down in cycling history. First raced in 1936 (on a course from Tournai to Liège), La Flèche Wallonne went through a watershed moment in 1985, when it moved its finish line to the summit of the Mur de Huy. The upcoming 88th edition, scheduled for 17 April 2024, will therefore be the 40th time that the race culminates on an ascent that immediately earned a spot among the toughest climbs in pro cycling.

To mark the occasion, the final circuit has been compacted to 31.6 km, with the Côte d’Ereffe and the Mur de Huy as the pièces de résistance. For the first time ever, the riders will have to drag their bicycles up these slopes (1.3 km at an average gradient of 9.6%, peaking at close to 20%, most notably on the Claudy Criquielion turn, named for the first victor on the Mur) an eye-watering four times! The successor to Tadej Pogacar, who clinched his first victory in 2023, will blast across the finish line around 4:30 pm, after 199.1 km of racing from Charleroi, which will host the start of the race for the 30th time.

Minutes after the gripping finale of the men’s race, the stars of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes will embark on their own adventure to tame the Mur too, in keeping with a fine tradition that goes all the way back to 1998. As usual, the women’s race will roll out of the Grand-Place in Huy, but the start of the 28th edition has been moved to 2 pm so that the crowds can give them a wild reception around 6 pm. On their way to the Mur, they will discover new ascents in Gives, Courrière and Évrehailles, coming at the beginning of a course that will be about 15 kilometres longer (143.5 km).

The order of the races will also be switched around on Sunday, 21 April. Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes will start in the early afternoon and draw to a close about an hour and a half after the Old Lady. Remco Evenepoel, eager to join Léon Houa, Eddy Merckx and Moreno Argentin in the ultra-select club of riders who have won the race three times in a row since its inaugural edition in 1892, will face the same climbs that sent him on a trajectory to his second triumph in 2023, including the detour to Cornémont, just after La Redoute, where he left Tom Pidcock in the dust.

Heading out from Bastogne, the women’s peloton will follow the very same route to Quai des Ardennes: a 147.6 km roller coaster peppered with nine climbs, starting with the Côte de Saint-Roch and also featuring the Wanne–Stockeu–Haute-Levée triptych before the Côte de La Roche-aux-Faucons, the last major challenge of the day. At the end of the adventure, glory awaits in the Ardent City.

Fleche Wallone 2023 – 127km Frauen

Eintagsrennen, Ergebnisse, Frauenradsport, Frühjahrskassiker, Strassenrennen, , , , , , ,


Photo HERBERT MOOS

1 DEMI VOLLERING 21 TEAM SD WORX 03h 29′ 25“ – – –
2 LIANE LIPPERT 13 MOVISTAR TEAM WOMEN 03h 29′ 30“ + 00h 00′ 05“ – –
3 GAIA REALINI 64 TREK – SEGAFREDO 03h 29′ 32“ + 00h 00′ 07“ – –
4 MARGARITA VICTO GARCIA CAÑELLAS 51 LIV RACING TEQFIND 03h 29′ 35“ + 00h 00′ 10“ – –
5 EVITA MUZIC 5 FDJ-SUEZ 03h 29′ 35“ + 00h 00′ 10“ – –
6 ASHLEIGH MOOLMAN-PASIO 31 AG INSURANCE – SOUDAL QUICK-STEP TEAM 03h 29′ 35“ + 00h 00′ 10“ – –
7 ANNEMIEK VAN VLEUTEN 11 MOVISTAR TEAM WOMEN 03h 29′ 35“ + 00h 00′ 10“ – –
8 SILVIA PERSICO 91 UAE TEAM ADQ 03h 29′ 41“ + 00h 00′ 16“ – –
9 ELISE CHABBEY 74 CANYON//SRAM RACING 03h 29′ 41“ + 00h 00′ 16“ – –
10 YARA KASTELIJN 121 FENIX-DECEUNINCK 03h 29′ 41“ + 00h 00′ 16“ – –
11 KATARZYNA NIEWIADOMA 71 CANYON//SRAM RACING 03h 29′ 41“ + 00h 00′ 16“ – –
12 JULIETTE LABOUS 81 TEAM DSM 03h 29′ 49“ + 00h 00′ 24“ – –
13 RICARDA BAUERNFEIND 72 CANYON//SRAM RACING 03h 29′ 52“ + 00h 00′ 27“ – –
14 VERONICA EWERS 102 EF EDUCATION – TIBCO – SVB 03h 29′ 52“ + 00h 00′ 27“ – –
15 SHIRIN VAN ANROOIJ 66 TREK – SEGAFREDO 03h 29′ 59“ + 00h 00′ 34“ – –

Vollering is an absolute Queen

Demi Vollering (SD Worx) impressed again as she tamed the Mur de Huy and all the rivals standing in her way to victory in the 26th edition of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes. Already a winner of the Amstel Gold Race (on Sunday) and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (2021), the Oranje star completes her set of triumphs in the hilly Northern classics, following the tracks of her former teammate and now sports director Anna van der Breggen. Put under pressure by her rivals, especially Movistar and Trek-Segafredo, Vollering took matters in her own hands and set a brutal pace on the final ascents to rise to glory. She’s a hot favourite for Sunday, in line with her other successes this Spring (Strade Bianche and Dwars door Vlanderen) and the dominant displays of performance of her team.

A 139-woman peloton set off from Huy’s Grand-Place under the sun, at 8:35. Attackers quickly try to get away but it takes 43km for two riders to really open a gap, just before the first of three ascents up the Mur de Huy. Caroline Andersson (Liv Racing Teqfind) and Antri Christoforou (Human Powered Health) enjoy a lead of 1’10’’ but the gap decreases to 30’’ at the summit (km 52.8).

Van Vleuten’s early move
Rachel Neylan (Cofidis) and Ella Harris (Lifeplus Wahoo) counter-attack and bridge the gap after 60km of intense racing. Karin Soderqvist (Lifeplus Wahoo) but she’s reeled in by the bunch on the first ascent of the Côte d’Ereffe. Movistar and Canyon//Sram up the ante, already showing their will to shake the race, but SD Worx react for Demi Vollering.

The attackers are caught on the Côte de Cherave (km 84.4) and Annemiek van Vleuten’s Movistar accelerate again towards the second ascent of the Mur de Huy. And the Dutch icon, wearing the rainbow jersey, accelerates on the ascent. Only Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon//Sram), Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step) and Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) accompany her at the front.

Spratt’s solo
SD Worx must react again. And Vollering herself pulls the bunch to get back to the attackers with 33km to go. But Trek-Segafredo maintain the pressure and Amanda Spratt goes solo with 32km to go.
Justine Ghekiere (AG Insurance-Soudal Quick-Step), Ricarda Bauernfeid (Canyon//Sram) and Erica Magnaldi (UAE Team ADQ) set off in pursuit. But Spratt is on for a one-woman-show. Atop the Côte d’Ereffe (18.4km to go), the chasers trial by 40’’ and the peloton by 1’05’’.

Vollering’s dominance
Movistar react to bring the gap down and Spratt is caught on the penultimate ascent of the day, Côte de Cherave, with 7km to go. Vollering sets a brutal pace on the ascent and only 10 riders can follow her into the last 5km.

Photo by HERBERT MOOS

The Oranje star is back at the front as she tackles the first slopes up the Mur de Huy. Into the last 400m, Liane Lippert (Movistar) and Mavi Garcia (Liv Racing Teqfind) are still with Vollering… But Anna van der Breggen’s successor surges to victory, the 13th for a Dutch rider in 26 editions of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes.

Fleche Wallone 2023 – 194km Männer

Eintagsrennen, Ergebnisse, Frühjahrskassiker, Strassenrennen, Teamnews, , , , , ,

Pogacar climbs Huy like a goat


Photo by HERBERT MOOS

1 TADEJ POGAČAR 121 UAE TEAM EMIRATES 04h 27′ 53′‚ – – –
2 SKJELMOSE MATTIAS JENSEN 175 TREK – SEGAFREDO 04h 27′ 53“ – – –
3 MIKEL LANDA MEANA 61 BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 04h 27′ 53“ – – –
4 MICHAEL WOODS 1 ISRAEL – PREMIER TECH 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
5 GIULIO CICCONE 171 TREK – SEGAFREDO 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
6 VICTOR LAFAY 164 COFIDIS 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
7 TIESJ BENOOT 111 JUMBO-VISMA 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
8 MAXIM VAN GILS 41 LOTTO DSTNY 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
9 ROMAIN BARDET 201 TEAM DSM 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
10 WARREN BARGUIL 91 TEAM ARKEA – SAMSIC 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
11 ATTILA VALTER 115 JUMBO-VISMA 04h 27′ 56“ + 00h 00′ 03“ – –
12 ROGER ADRIA OLIVERAS 221 EQUIPO KERN PHARMA 04h 28′ 02“ + 00h 00′ 09“ – –
13 ALEX ARANBURU DEBA 13 MOVISTAR TEAM 04h 28′ 03“ + 00h 00′ 10“ – –
14 ILAN VAN WILDER 36 SOUDAL QUICK-STEP 04h 28′ 03“ + 00h 00′ 10“ – –
15 TOBIAS HALLAND JOHANNESSEN 181 UNO-X PRO CYCLING TEAM 04h 28′ 03“ + 00h 00‘ 10“

No dice. Every conversation ahead of the 2023 Flèche Wallonne revolved around who and how could prevent Tadej Pogacar from triumphing atop the Mur de Huy. In the end, no one could. UAE Team Emirates kept the race on a tight leash all the way to the final climb, where its Slovenian leader unfurled yet another lethal acceleration to get his first win in this Classic – the 12th victory in his history-making season. Matthias Skjelmose (Trek-Segafredo) and Mikel Landa (Bahrain Victorious) stood with him on the podium after crossing the finish line in second and third position.


Photo by HERBERT MOOS

173 riders took the start at 11:51 on the 87th edition of the Flèche Wallonne, that was held over 194,2 kilometres between Herve and the Mur de Huy. There were two non-starters, Benoît Cosnefroy (Ag2r-Citröen) and Jai Hindley (Bora-Hansgrohe), both sick. It took 16 kilometres until an 8-man breakaway was established at the head of the race with Jacob Hindsgaul Madsen (Uno-X), Daryl Impey (Israel-Premier Tech), Lawrence Naesen (AG2R-Citroen), Georg Zimmermann (Intermarche-Circus-Wanty), Soren Kragh Andersen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Raul Garcia Pierna (Kern Pharma), Johan Meens (Bingoal WB) and Jetse Bol (Burgos BH).

Tadej Pogacar’s UAE Team Emirates and Tom Pidcock’s Ineos Grenadiers took turns at the head of the peloton to control the gap of the breakaway, which amounted up to 3’50” at kilometer 64. The distance was not worrying for the bunch, though, as it narrowed the gap on every climb. By the first time the race hit the Mur de Huy (km 119,8), the lead was down to 1’15” and Naesen had been dropped from the front group.

Unrewarded attacks
The race situation only changed when the breakaway hit the Côte d’Ereffe (km 138,6) for the second time. Kragh Andersen accelerated at the front and Zimmermann was the only one who could match his pace. At the time of cresting the Mur de Huy (km 157,1) for a last passage through the finish line, they kept a 57” advantage over a peloton where Samuele Battistella (Astana Qazaqstan) launched an attack that was later echoed by Louis Vervaeke (Soudal-Quick Step). The newly-formed chasing duo joined the two riders at the head of the race with 31 kilometres to go. The menace of crosswinds prompted the bunch to speed up, and the gap between the front group and the pack was down to 25” with 25 kilometres left.

Vervaeke, last man standing
The climb to the Côte d’Ereffe (km 175,8) saw Zimmermann lose ground to the breakaway, while UAE kept pulling for a steady gap of 30”. Vervaeke took off solo in the last Côte de Cherave (km 188,6), reaching its summit with a mere 12” advantage on a bunch where Pogacar’s team kept speeding up. Clutch time came with the Mur de Huy, as the lone leader was caught right under the red kite signaling one kilometer to go. All favorites bid their time in the slopes of Huy. Romain Bardet (Team DSM) was the first to attack with just 250 meters left, yet he was quickly overtaken by Pogacar, who claimed an excellent victory by a comfortable margin.

Enttäuschender Tag beim Flèche Wallone bringt kein Spitzenergebnis für BORA – hansgrohe

er Wallonischen Pfeil wurde auf einer 194 km langen Strecke ausgetragen, die mit dem Schlussanstieg zur Mur de Huy endete. Obwohl die Rampe nur rund ein Kilometer lang ist weist sie durchschnittlich fast zehn Prozent Steigung auf und musste im Rennverlauf drei Mal bewältigt werden. BORA – hansgrohe musste heute ohne Jai Hindley an den Start gehen, da der Australier krankheitsbedingt das Rennen nicht antreten konnte. Bei der zweiten Passage der Mur waren Sergio Higuita, Nico Denz, Ben Zwiehoff und Giovanni Aleotti im reduzierten Feld 20 Sekunden hinter einer 4-Mann Spitzengruppe. Aber wie auch schon in den vorherigen Austragungen des Rennens kam es auf der letzten Schleife zu einem Showdown der verbleibenden Favoriten, wobei leider keine BORA-hansgrohe Fahrer heute im Finale mitmischen konnten.

Reaktionen im Ziel

„Es fühlt sich sehr frustrierend an, wenn man mit einer sehr guten Mannschaft herkommt und mit leeren Händen wieder nach Hause fährt. Sergio war nach der Baskenland-Rundfahrt ein bisschen erkältet, und er scheint noch nicht wieder in Form zu sein. Und des Weiteren haben wir heute Morgen Jai durch Krankheit verloren und so konnten wir unsere Strategie nicht umsetzen. Dann steht man halt zum Schluss mit leeren Händen da, was sehr bitter ist.“ – Jens Zemke, Sportlicher Leiter

TADEJ READY TO PO-GO-GO IN THE ARDENNES – Fleche Wallone

Eintagsrennen, Vorschau, Weltcup und Klassiker, , , ,

Key points:

 The most prolific winner of this season, Tadej Pogacar, is lining up for all three Ardennes classics, including the 87th edition of the Flèche Wallonne, scheduled for Wednesday, 19 April.
 However, there is no shortage of challengers with a better track record than the Slovenian on the Mur de Huy who will do their best to either outgun him or outsmart him, including Tom Pidcock, David Gaudu and Benoît Cosnefroy. The Spaniards Enric Mas and Mikel Landa, as well as the Colombians Sergio Higuita and Dani Martinez, could also join the battle.

 After that, Tadej Pogacar will head to Liège–Bastogne–Liège to wrap up his spring classics campaign with a showdown with Remco Evenepoel.

It feels like the dawn of a new era! Alejandro Valverde, Philippe Gilbert and Vincenzo Nibali all hung up their bicycles in 2022, dramatically changing the landscape of the Ardennes classics.
The voracious appetite of Tadej Pogacar is set to shake it up even more in spring 2023, in which he will be tackling the Amstel-Flèche-Liège trilogy for the first time since 2019. Then 20 years old, had recently made his first blip on the radar with a triumph in the Volta ao Algarve. Fast forward four years and „Pogi“ is the odds-on favourite in any race and on any terrain, a role he usually embraces with enthusiasm. He has already bagged 10 victories this season, including the Vuelta a Andalucía, Paris–Nice and the Tour of Flanders. While the Slovenian has never finished higher than ninth (2022) in the Flèche Wallonne, he certainly has the punch to emerge victorious from the clash on the Mur de Huy, not least because of his experience, with four starts under his belt.
Yet the climber with a rebel streak is still only human. The main combatants in the battle royale on the slopes of the Mur de Huy appear evenly matched, as none has scored more than once on this daunting, exceptional climb.
The reigning champion, Dylan Teuns, has been firing blank shots since the season got under way and, in general, his performances since joining Israel–Premier Tech have been nothing to write home about. The start list is full of riders on a roll.
Tom Pidcock, in a league of his own in Strade Bianche, has what it takes to build on his sixth place from 2021 and could even add another prestigious classic to his tally if he carries on his stellar form from Italy. Ditto for David Gaudu, who showed in Paris–Nice (second) that he has the legs to improve on his seventh place from 2021. French prospects are not limited to the Groupama–FDJ climber, as the Flèche Wallonne could also set the stage for the long-awaited return in force of Benoît Cosnefroy (second in 2020), Warren Barguil (fourth in 2020 and fifth in 2021) or Romain Bardet (ninth in 2018).
A closer look also reveals a high probability of finding a Spanish-speaking rider trying —and even succeeding— to best Pogacar. Mikel Landa is at the helm of the Spanish Armada following his impressive run in the Tour of the Basque Country (second), where Enric Mas (fifth) and Ion Izagirre (third) were also a force to be reckoned with. Meanwhile, among the Colombians, Sergio Higuita also stole the show in the Tour of the Basque Country, winning a leg-breaking stage in a new flash of talent.
The eye-watering gradients of the Chemin des Chapelles could play to the strengths of the Colombian national champion, Esteban Chaves, as they did last year for Dani Martínez (fifth), Ineos Grenadiers’s other ace. The map of pretenders to the crown now takes us to Canada, where Michael Woods (third in 2020) is a back-up option for Israel–Premier Tech, while Trek–Segafredo’s Italian Giulio Ciccone, who won the stage to the Vallter resort in the Volta a Catalunya and was one of the few riders to beat Primoz Roglic in the one-week race.

Whether or not his collection of silverware has grown in the meantime, Tadej Pogacar also intends to lock horns with Remco Evenepoel in Liège–Bastogne–Liège in a clash of titans between the last two winners. The world champion could put a smile back on the Soudal Quick-Step team’s faces by landing their first monument of the year, perhaps with the help of Julian Alaphilippe, who twice had to settle for second in Liège (2015 and 2021). The Olympic gold medallist, Richard Carapaz, will join the champions already present in Huy, along with Soren Kragh Andersen, Aleksandr Vlasov, Guillaume Martin, Ben O’Connor…

25 teams, main contenders

Germany
Bora–Hansgrohe: Higuita (COL) and Hindley (AUS)

Australia
Jayco AlUla: Sobrero (ITA), Craddock (USA) and Grmay (ETH)

Bahrain
Bahrain Victorious: Landa, Bilbao (ESP), Mohoric (SLO) and Poels (NED)

Belgium
Soudal Quick-Step: Bagioli (ITA), Schmid (SUI) and Vervaeke (BEL)
Lotto Dstny: Van Gils (BEL), Eenkhoorn (NED) and Sweeny (AUS)
Intermarché–Circus–Wanty: Calmejane (FRA) and Costa (POR)
Alpecin–Deceuninck: Hermans (BEL) and Stannard (AUS)
Bingoal–WB: Teugels and Mertz (BEL)

United Arab Emirates
UAE Team Emirates: Pogacar (SLO), Hirschi (SUI), Ulissi (ITA) and Wellens (BEL)

Spain
Movistar Team: Mas and Aranburu (ESP)
Equipo Kern Pharma: Adrià and Arrieta (ESP)
Burgos BH: Bol (NED) and Sánchez (ESP)

United States
Trek–Segafredo: Mollema (NED), Ciccone (ITA) and López (ESP)
EF Education–EasyPost: Chaves (COL), Powless (USA) and Honoré (DEN)

France
AG2R Citroën Team: Cosnefroy and Bonnamour (FRA)
Groupama–FDJ: Madouas, Gaudu and Molard (FRA)
Cofidis: Jesús Herrada (ESP) and Lafay (FRA)
Team Arkéa–Samsic: Barguil and Champoussin (FRA)
TotalEnergies: Latour and Vuillermoz (FRA)

United Kingdom
Ineos Grenadiers: Pidcock (GBR), Kwiatkowski (POL) and Martínez (COL)

Israel
Israel–Premier Tech: Teuns (BEL), Woods (CAN) and Schultz (AUS)

Kazakhstan
Astana Qazaqstan Team: Lutsenko (KAZ) and De la Cruz (ESP)

Norway
Uno-X Pro Cycling Team: T. Johannessen (NOR) and Charmig (DEN)

Netherlands
Jumbo–Visma: Benoot (BEL) and Valter (HUN)
Team DSM: Bardet, Combaud (FRA) and Hamilton (AUS)

La Flèche Wallonne – 202 Km

Eintagsrennen, Ergebnisse, Frühjahrskassiker, Weltcup und Klassiker, , , , , , , , ,


Photos by HERBERT MOOS


Photo by Plomi

1 TEUNS Dylan BEL BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 04:42:12
2 VALVERDE Alejandro ESP MOVISTAR TEAM 00:02
3 VLASOV Aleksandr RUS BORA – HANSGROHE 00:02
4 ALAPHILIPPE Julian FRA QUICK-STEP ALPHA VINYL TEAM 00:05
5 MARTINEZ Daniel Felipe COL INEOS GRENADIERS 00:07
6 WOODS Michael CAN ISRAEL-PREMIER TECH 00:07
7 ALMEIDA GUERREIRO Ruben Antonio POR EF EDUCATION – EASYPOST 00:07
8 MOLARD Rudy FRA GROUPAMA – FDJ 00:07
9 BARGUIL Warren FRA TEAM ARKEA – SAMSIC 00:07
10 VUILLERMOZ Alexis FRA TOTALENERGIES 00:07
11 BENOOT Tiesj BEL JUMBO – VISMA 00:07
12 POGACAR Tadej SLO UAE TEAM EMIRATES 00:07
13 COSNEFROY Benoit FRA AG2R CITROEN TEAM 00:07
14 SCHULTZ Nicholas AUS TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE-JAYCO 00:07
15 POZZOVIVO Domenico ITA INTERMARCHE – WANTY – GOBERT MATERIAUX 00:07
16 HERRADA Jesus ESP COFIDIS 00:15
17 PACHER Quentin FRA GROUPAMA – FDJ 00:17
18 JENSEN Mattias DEN TREK – SEGAFREDO 00:21
19 POWLESS Neilson USA EF EDUCATION – EASYPOST 00:24
20 JOHANNESSEN Tobias Halland NOR UNO-X PRO CYCLING TEAM 00:24

Aleks Vlasov auf dem Podest beim Flèche Wallonne

Mit dem Start dieses Jahr erstmals in Blegny, im Osten der Ardennen, wies der Frühjahrsklassiker Wallonischer Pfeil auf seiner 202 km langen Strecke elf Steigungen auf. Nach rund 120 Kilometern begannen die Fahrer die erste von drei Schleifen um die Stadt Huy, die die letzten 80 km der Rennstrecke ausmachen, und auf der dreimal die Mauer von Huy gemeistert werden musste. Mit einem durchschnittlichen Steigungsgrad von 9,6 Prozent und Abschnitten von bis zu 19 Prozent hatte die Mur de Huy es in sich. Bei der zweiten Überquerung der Mur gab es nur eine Handvoll Fahrer an der Spitze des Rennens, bevor die letzten Ausreißer 9 km vor dem Ziel eingeholt waren. Ein ziemlich großes Feld nahm die letzten Kilometer dann zusammen in Angriff. Nachdem mehrere Attacken vor dem Finale erfolglos blieben, kam es zur Entscheidung in der steilen Steigung zum Ziel hinauf. 250 Meter vor dem Ziel lancierte Teuns eine Attacke, der nur Valverde und Aleks Vlasov folgen konnten. Am Ende erwies sich Teuns als der Stärkste im Bergaufsprint, während Aleks den dritten Platz einfuhr.

Reaktionen im Ziel
„Ich bin mit meiner ersten Teilnahme am Flèche Wallonne sehr zufrieden. Das Rennen war ziemlich nervös, weil alle um eine gute Position kämpfen wollten. Ich wusste, dass ich den finalen Anstieg so weit vorne wie möglich anfangen musste und im Finale habe ich dann versucht, Valverde zu folgen. Ich habe heute wirklich alles gegeben und am Ende hat es sich gelohnt. Und wer weiß, nach meinem Podestplatz hier werde ich es nächstes Jahr vielleicht nochmals versuchen. Jetzt konzentrieren wir uns auf Lüttich-Bastogne-Lüttich. Ich bin jetzt gut in Form, also wir werden sehen, was da möglich ist.“ – Aleks Vlasov
„Besonders nach seiner starken Leistung bei der Baskenland-Rundfahrt wussten wir, dass wir mit Aleks Vlasov einen Fahrer haben, der hier mit um den Sieg kämpfen konnte. Wir hatten vier Rookies, unter ihnen auch Aleks, die heute Flèche Wallonne zum ersten Mal gefahren sind. Wir haben uns gestern die Strecke im Detail angeschaut und haben einen klaren Plan formuliert um Aleks 100 Prozent zu unterstützen. Den haben wir auch perfekt umgesetzt. Aleks hat genau das gemacht, was wir vorher besprochen hatten: 300 Meter vor dem Ziel an das Hinterrad von Valverde klemmen und eine gute Position finden. Die anderen sechs Fahrer haben alle einen super Job gemacht. Sie kommen teilweise aus dem Höhentrainingslager, und teilweise aus Verletzung zurück, aber jeder hat seinen Job gemacht. Also als der Sportliche Leiter bin ich mit dem Ergebnis sehr zufrieden.“ – Jens Zemke, Sportlicher Leiter

Teuns upsets Valverde’s last hurrah

Belgian ‘puncheur’ Dylan Teuns won the Flèche Wallonne by timing his effort perfectly to be the quickest up the Mur de Huy, which once again was crucial and definitive on the first of the two Ardennes classics.
The Bahrain Victorious rider defeated Movistar Team’s Alejandro Valverde, who on his final appearance on this race was not able to extend his record victory count from five to six. Third in contention was Bora-Hansgrohe’s Alexander Vlasov, with current World Champion Julian Alaphilippe in fourth place and Ineos Grenadiers’ Daniel Martínez in fifth. It’s the first time a Belgian rider wins the Flèche Wallonne since Philippe Gilbert’s victory in 2011.

173 riders took the start on the 86th edition of the Flèche Wallonne at 11:32 as there were two non-starters, Michael Matthews (BikeExchange-Jayco) and Andreas Kron (Lotto-Soudal), both sick. Morten Hulgaard (Uno-X Pro Cycling Team), Paul Ourselin (TotalEnergies) and Ruben Apers (Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise) staged an attempt to break away that didn’t succeed. It was at kilometer 28 that Daryl Impey (Israel-PremierTech), Simon Guglielmi (Arkéa-Samsic), Bruno Armirail (Groupama-FDJ), Chris Juul Jensen (BikeExchange-Jayco), Jimmy Janssens (Alpecin-Fenix), Valentin Ferron (TotalEnergies) Pierre Rolland (B&B Hotels-KTM) and the aforementioned Hulgaard managed to go clear. Some minutes later, Jens Reynders (Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise) and Luc Wirtgen (Bingoal-Pauwels Sauces) countered as the bunch decided to let the group become the breakaway of the day. Wirtgen bridged back atop the Côte des Forges (km 55,1), while Reynders took some further 10 kilometers to regain the head of the race.

Not much leeway for the attackers
The 10-man group managed to build a maximum advantage of 3’15”, clocked 90 kilometers into the race, over the pack, led by UAE Team Emirates, Ineos Grenadiers and Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl. The nervous approach to the final circuit, which was to be lapped three times, brought the gap down to 1’35” atop the first climb to the Côte d’Ereffe (km 121,3). The climbs began to wear down the riders at the front. Reynders and Wirtgen were dropped in the Côte de Cherave (km 134,1), as were Juul Jensen, Hulgaard and Rolland on the second time up the Côte d’Ereffe (km 152,5). Meanwhile, back in the bunch, pre-race favorite Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers) got dropped atop the Mur de Huy (km 139,8). He withdrew from the race soon after.

Victory up for grabs in Huy
As the breakaway got smaller, bigger was the will of the riders on the bunch to attack. We saw several attempts from Intermarché-Wanty Gobert riders, but it was Simon Carr (EF Education-EasyPost) who took off on the second climb to the Côte de Cherave (km 165,2) and pulled off a successful chase to regain the head of the race with 25 kilometers to go. Carr did not settle with being at the front and decided to attack again while climbing the Côte d’Ereffe (km 183,6), with Ferron on his wheel, leaving the rest of their breakaway companions to be caught by the bunch shortly after. The peloton shut down their move for good with 9 kilometres to go. The last climb to the Côte de Cherave (km 196,4) saw aggression from Rémy Rochas (Cofidis), Mauri Vansevenant (Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl) and Soren Kragh Andersen (Team DSM). The Frenchman got dropped on the way to the Mur de Huy, while the Belgian and the Dane were overtaken by the bunch under the last kilometer banner. Movistar Team set the pace up the Mur de Huy with Carlos Verona and Enric Mas, but in came Dylan Teuns to frustrate the plans of the Spanish team with the powerful acceleration he launched at the 200 meters to go sign.
@ASO

Flèche Wallonne Femmes 2022 – 133km

Eintagsrennen, Ergebnisse, Frauenradsport, Frühjahrskassiker, Weltcup und Klassiker, , , , ,

Cavalli and the Mur are unique


Photos by HERBERT MOOS

1 CAVALLI Marta ITA FDJ NOUVELLE-AQUITAINE FUTUROSCOPE 03:38:37
2 VAN VLEUTEN Annemiek NED MOVISTAR TEAM 00:00
3 VOLLERING Demi NED TEAM SD WORX 00:10
4 MOOLMAN Ashleigh RSA TEAM SD WORX 00:17
5 GARCÍA Mavi ESP UAE TEAM ADQ 00:21
6 LONGO BORGHINI Elisa ITA TREK – SEGAFREDO 00:30
7 LIPPERT Liane GER TEAM DSM 00:33
8 DOEBEL-HICKOK Kristabel USA EF EDUCATION-TIBCO-SVB 00:37
9 KASTELIJN Yara NED PLANTUR-PURA 00:40
10 SANTESTEBAN Ane ESP TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE – JAYCO 00:42
11 ROOIJAKKERS Pauliena NED CANYON//SRAM RACING 00:46
12 NIEWIADOMA Katarzyna POL CANYON//SRAM RACING 00:52
13 VAN ANROOIJ Shirin NED TREK – SEGAFREDO 00:52
14 KOSTER Anouska NED TEAM JUMBO-VISMA 01:01
15 SIERRA Arlenis CUB MOVISTAR TEAM 01:07
16 BARIL Olivia CAN VALCAR – TRAVEL & SERVICE 01:07
17 FISHER-BLACK Niamh NZL TEAM SD WORX 01:07
18 PATIÑO Paula Andrea COL MOVISTAR TEAM 01:07
19 MAGNALDI Erica ITA UAE TEAM ADQ 01:07

Marta Cavalli’s beautiful spring became even more impressive on Wednesday, as the Italian leader from FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope powered to victory on the mighty slopes of the Mur de Huy.

Only four days after she came 5th of Paris-Roubaix, the winner of Amstel Gold Race got the best of Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team) to become the second Italian winner of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes, whose first conqueror, Cavalli’s compatriot Fabiana Luperini, returned to the event and followed the race from the car of the event director François Lemarchand before joining Cavalli on the podium. At 24 years old, she succeeds Anna van der Breggen, winner of the past 7 editions, now a sports director for Team SD Worx and Demi Vollering (3rd).

Flèche Wallonne Femmes 2022 – Last KM
It’s an early start for the 128 women lining up in Huy to take on 133.4km, including three ascents of the Mur de Huy, a first on the occasion of the 25th edition of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes. After a handful of attempts in the first part of the race, Katia Ragusa (Liv Racing Xstra) is the first attacker to get away from the bunch. Anastasia Carbonari (Valcar-Travel & Service) and Kylie Waterreus (Lotto Soudal Ladies) join her at the front 10km later, while the peloton trail by 30“.

Not much of a gap for the first attackers
More riders try to make the break, and three attackers successfully do so: Federica Piergiovanni (Valcar-Travel & Service), Pauline Allin (Arké Pro Cycling Team) and Silvia Zanardi (Bepink). The gap to the peloton is up to 52’’ at km 50, as they get closer to the first ascent of the Côte de Cherave (summit at km 65.4).
The attackers reach the bottom of the climb with a lead of 1’50’’. Zanardi leads the way to the summit, and the gap to the bunch is down to 1’10’’. The Italian rider also sets the pace on the first ascent up Mur de Huy (km 71.1). Waterreus can’t keep up with her pace, while the intensity picks up in the peloton, bringing the gap down to 45’’ at the summit.

An impressive counter-attack
The five leaders manage to build a bigger advantage after the summit (1’30’’), but more attackers try to get away from the bunch on the way to Côte d’Ereffe. A group of 10 are eventually able to go free and bridge the gap to Ragusa, Carbonari, Piergiovanni, Allin and Zanardi at km 95: Anna Shackley (SD Worx), Alena Amialiusik, Elise Chabbey (Canyon//Sram), Leah Thomas (Trek-Segafredo), Jelena Eric (Movistar), Esmée Peperkamp (Team DSM), Amanda Spratt (BikeExchange-Jayco), Anouska Koster (Jumbo-Visma), Krista Doebel-Hickock (EF Education-Tibco-SVB), and Yara Kastelijn (Plantur-Pura).
They open a gap of 2 minutes on the next ascent of Côte de Cherave (km 96.5). Marta Cavalli’s FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope react to bring the gap down to 1’45’’ atop the penultimate ascent of the Mur de Huy (31.2km to go), and 1’25’’ as the race enters the last 25km.

Van Vleuten tries to break Cavalli
Eric drops down from the breakaway to the bunch to participate in the chase behind her nine former companions. The attackers are only 20’’ away with 10km to go. They’re eventually caught as SD Worx put the hammer down on the final ascent up Côte de Cherave, just before the final 5km.

Some 15 riders get back together on the way to Huy. Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar) has two teammates to set her up, and the Dutch star sets a strong pace on the steepest slopes, as she tries to drop all her rivals with 400m to go. Cavalli is the only one who can follow Van Vleuten… And she even has enough strength to move past her just at the summit.
© A.S.O.

La Flèche Wallonne Femmes: a throne up for grabs

Eintagsrennen, Frauenradsport, Frühjahrskassiker, Vorschau,

Olympic Champion Anne van der Breggen wins the Fleche the 4th time in a row!
Photo by Plomi

Key points:
 Edition 25 of the Flèche Wallonne Femmes, on Wednesday, 20th April, will, for the first time, feature three climbs of the Mur de Huy.
 The retirement of seven-time title holder Anna van der Breggen has whetted appetites. But the Dutch are still the favourites, with the duo Demi Vollering and Annemiek van Vleuten.
 Four days later, on Sunday, 24th April, the best female punchers in the world will gather at Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes, a Doyenne that the legendary Marianne Vos wants to win at last.

A new era of the Flèche Wallonne Femmes will begin on Wednesday, 20th April. After seven consecutive victories, the legendary Anna van der Breggen ended her career this winter and left her throne at the top of the Mur de Huy vacant. The race to succeed her looks wide open, but the Dutch riders, winners of 12 of the last 15 editions, are still holding the line despite the retirement of the two-time world champion. Second in 2015 and 2019, the nearly forty-year-old Annemiek van Vleuten (Movistar Team Women) would like nothing more than to win one of the few races that she still has not won in her career. And Demi Vollering, 14 years younger than her and the climbing star of Dutch cycling, has all the talent necessary to be the new queen of the „Mur“, which for the first time will be climbed three times on a course of 133.4 kilometres. 5th in 2019, 3rd in 2020, she finished 10th last year as she worked for Van der Breggen. Van der Breggen, who is now a sports director, advises her from the SD Worx team car, which will be worth its weight in gold on Wednesday.

Of course, not everything revolves around the Dutch clan. Italy’s Marta Cavalli has provided brilliant proof of this in their backyard on the Amstel Gold Race, offering FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope the most prestigious triumph in its history. The French team wants to keep the momentum going with Danish rider Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig, who contracted Covid just before the Amstel, but her profile as a puncher ideally suits the Mur de Huy (2nd in 2020). Respectively 2nd and 3rd last year, Polish rider Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Canyon//Sram Racing) and Italian champion Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek-Segafredo) also have lofty ambitions.

All the contenders will meet again four days later, on Sunday, 24th April, for the 6th edition of Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes, with seven climbs spread over 142,1 kilometres, including La Redoute and La Roche-aux-Faucons. Amstel Gold Racerunner-up, Demi Vollering, is the favourite to repeat and will lead a strong Team SD Worx. If she wins for the second time in a row, she will equal Anna van der Breggen, who won in 2017 and 2018. Marianne Vos (Team Jumbo-Visma) will want to mark the best climbers to then defeat the peloton in the sprint on the Quai des Ardennes. She has never won Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes (4th in 2020, 6th in 2021). One of the very few titles absent from her resume.

24 teams, the leading riders

Australia
Team BikeExchange-Jayco: Amanda Spratt (Aus)

Belgium
Bingoal Casino-Chevalmeire-Van Eyck Sport: Denise Betsema (Ned)
Lotto Soudal Ladies: Mieke Docx (Bel)
Plantur-Pura: Yara Kastelijn (Ned)

France
Arkea Pro Cycling Team: Morgane Coston (Fra)
Cofidis Women Team: Rachel Neylan (Aus)
FDJ Nouvelle-Aquitaine Futuroscope: Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (Den), Marta Cavalli (Ita), Evita Muzic (Fra)

Germany
Canyon//Sram Racing: Katarzyna Niewiadoma (Pol), Elise Chabbey (Che)

Great Britain
Le Col Wahoo: Elizabeth Holden (Gbr), Eider Merino (Spa)

Italy
Valcar-Travel & Service: Olivia Baril (Can), Elena Pirrone (Ita)
Bepink: Silvia Zanardi (Ita)

Luxembourg
Andy Schleck-CP NVST-Immo Losch: Claire Faber (Lux)

Norway
Uno-X Pro Cycling Team: Hannah Barnes (Gbr)

Spain
Movistar Team Women: Annemiek van Vleuten (Ned), Arlenis Sierra (Cub)

Switzerland
Roland Cogeas Edelweiss Squad: Tamara Dronova

The Netherlands
Liv Racing Xstra: Sabrina Stultiens (Ned)
Parkhotel Valkenburg: Femke Gerritse (Ned)
Team DSM: Juliette Labous (Fra)
Team Jumbo-Visma: Anouska Koster (Ned)
Team SD Worx: Demi Vollering (Ned), Ashleigh Moolman-Pasio (Rsa), Blanka Vas (Hun)

United Arab Emirates
UAE Team ADQ: Mavi Garcia (Spa), Sofia Bertizzolo (Ita)

United States
EF Education-Tibco-SVB: Veronica Ewers (Usa)
Human Powered Health: Nina Buijsman (Ned)
Trek-Segafredo: Elisa Longo-Borghini (Ita), Lucinda Brand (Ned)

La Flèche Wallonne : The end of the „Balaf“ era

Eintagsrennen, Frühjahrskassiker, Vorschau, ,


Photo by Plomi

Key points:
 Alejandro Valverde and Julian Alaphilippe have won the Flèche Wallonne eight times between them and remain undefeated on the Mur de Huy since 2014. „Bala“ and „Alaf“ meet for the last time on the Ardennes Classics, as the former Spanish world champion has decided to retire at the end of the 2022 season.
 The two Flèche Wallonne experts will face stiff competition on Wednesday, April 20th on the final metres of the 86th edition. Tadej Pogacar has made the Ardennes campaign his last races before immersing himself in the preparation of the Tour de France while the Ineos Grenadiers team will be in force behind Thomas Pidcock.

 As for French concerns, recent races have seen riders like Benoit Cosnefroy and Valentin Madouas rise to the level of the best, just like Warren Barguil who already performed well in Huy.
It has been six years since the up-and-coming rider Julian Alaphilippe was only spotted by the most experienced of observers and came close to a major exploit the day he discovered the Mur de Huy.

In 2015, the newcomer finished runner-up to the master, Alejandro Valverde, who won the third of his five victories at the top of the Chemin des Chapelles. Since then, the two kept improving and sharing the Flèche Wallonne spoils, except in 2020 when Marc Hirschi took top honours, on a Wednesday in September when neither the Spaniard nor the Frenchman participated! Last year, after a breath-taking final, „Alaf“ won for the third time, while „Bala“ finished 3rd, for his eighth podium result on the Flèche Wallonne. Time goes by, but for their last duel in the Flèche, the „Balaf“ duo is still at the top of the bill. The champion from Murcia doesn’t want his final season to be a farewell tour. Even though his season hasn’t, so far, been the most flattering of his career, Valverde already has three victories in 2022 to his credit and a runner-up result in the Strade Bianche, which wouldn’t be realistic for an ageing pre-retiree. The world champion has already won a stage on the Tour of the Basque Country and rarely makes miscues when preparing for his races. The two Flèche Wallonne specialists should still be able to break late in the race.

However, Valverde and Alaphilippe’s hold on the Flèche Wallonne is not guaranteed. As in most cycling circles, the Slovenian camp’s rise to power could also involve conquering the Ardennes. If Primoz Roglic, 2nd in 2021, will not come to the Flèche Wallonne this year, Tadej Pogacar should not have any qualms after his victory in Liège last year. His near-absolute domination in 2022 on the Italian roads (Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico), leaves little doubt about his ability to excel if he takes the measure of the tricky last kilometre. Many riders want to mix it up with the Slovenian ogre and the established leaders in the big puncher’s race. Ineos Grenadiers has a near-complete team of contenders: Thomas Pidcock took an encouraging 6th place in his first go in 2021, Michal Kwiatkowski just won the Amstel Gold Race for the second time and finished third in 2014, Dani Martinez recently won the Tour of the Basque Country, and Carlos Rodriguez won a stage at the age of 21 and is an expected future Spanish champion. The French delegation could also create a stir, considering the recent results of Valentin Madouas (3rd in Flanders) and Benoit Cosnefroy (2nd in the Amstel Gold Race). Warren Barguil, who picked up a stage on the Tirreno-Adriatico, and won the Grand Prix Miguel Indurain, has four top-ten finishes in the Flèche Wallonne (4th in 2020). It will be a complete field at the bottom of the Mur de Huy.

25 teams, the leading riders

Australia
Team BikeExchange – Jayco : Matthews (Aus), Grmay (Eth)

Bahrain
Bahrain Victorious : Poels (Ned), Teuns (Bel), Caruso (Ita)

Belgium
Quick-Step Alpha Vinyl Team : Alaphilippe (Fra), Evenepoel (Bel)
Lotto Soudal : Wellens, Gilbert (Bel)
Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux : Pozzovivo (Ita), Bakelants (Bel)
Alpecin-Fenix : Meurisse (Bel), Stannard (Aus)
Sport Vlaanderen-Baloise : Herregodts, Van Poucke (Bel)
Bingoal Pauwels Sauces WB : Mertz (Bel)

France
AG2R Citroen Team : Cosnefroy, Champoussin, Paret-Peintre (Fra)
Groupama-FDJ : Madouas, Gaudu, Molard (Fra)
Cofidis : I.Izagirre, Herrada (Spa)
Team Arkea-Samsic : Barguil (Fra), Anacona (Col)
TotalEnergies : Latour, Vuillermoz (Fra)
B&B Hotels-KTM : Bonnamour, Koretzky, Rolland (Fra)

Germany
BORA-hansgrohe : Higuita (Col), Hindley (Aus), Vlasov

Great Britain
Ineos Grenadiers : Pidcock, Thomas (Gbr), Kwiatkowski (Pol), Martinez (Col), Rodriguez (Spa)

Israel
Israel-Premier Tech : Woods (Can), Fuglsang, Schmidt (Den)

Kazakhstan
Astana Qazaqstan Team : Lutsenko (Kaz), De la Cruz (Spa), Nibali (Ita)

Norway
Uno-X Pro Cycling Team : Johannessen (Nor)

Spain
Movistar Team : Valverde, Mas, Aranburu (Spa)

The Netherlands
Jumbo-Visma : Benoot (Bel), Vingegaard (Den)

United Arab Emirates
UAE Team Emirates : Pogacar (Slo), Hirschi (Che), Soler (Spa), Ulissi (Ita)

United States
Trek-Segafredo : Mollema (Ned), Ciccone (Ita), Kamp (Den)
EF Education-Easypost : Uran (Col), Powless (Usa), Padun (Ukr)