Gent–Wevelgem , officially Gent–Wevelgem – In Flanders Fields , is a road cycling race in Belgium, held annually since 1934. It is one of the classic races part of the Flemish Cycling Week , run in late March on the last Sunday before the Tour of Flanders .
98-399: Although the event is often called a sprinters' classic due to its flat finishing terrain, its early-season date means riders are often tested by wind and rain, as well as several climbs, including two ascents of the steep and fully cobbled Kemmelberg . As a result, few editions of Gent–Wevelgem actually end in a bunch sprint – often the winner comes from a small group of escapees. In 2005
196-458: A women's race has been organized on the same day as the men's over a shorter distance. Since 2021, the women's race shares the Tour of Flanders name with the men's race. To distinguish between them, they are now categorised as the 'Elite Men' and 'Elite Women' editions. The Tour of Flanders was conceived in 1913 by Léon van den Haute, co-founder of the sports newspaper Sportwereld . In the era it
294-409: A "wild rodeo" of spectators driving behind the race and seeking shortcuts across the course to see the race several times. He claimed the police estimated the crowd for early races at 500,000. People followed the race in cars, overtook it when they could, or stood so thick by the roadside in villages and at control points that the riders sometimes had trouble passing. In 1933, Van Wijnendaele involved
392-467: A French team, he symbolized a potential rise for Belgian cycling. Defraye's victory inspired August De Maeght, mayor of Halle and director of the press group Société Belge d'Imprimerie , to publish a Dutch-language sports magazine called Sportwereld . Sportwereld' s most prominent cycling writer was Karel Van Wijnendaele , a young sports journalist and passionate cycling fan who had tried cycle-racing himself. The first issue appeared in time for
490-413: A car. The rules changed from year to year until they resembled those of today by the end of the 1950s. Prizes for the first race in 1913 came to 1,100 Belgian francs . By 1935 the fees and bonuses had increased to 12,500 francs, with 2,500 for the winner down to 125 francs for the 19th-place finisher (at a time when a newspaper cost 40 cents). In 1938 there was a bonus of 100 francs for any rider who had
588-466: A five-man group and favourites to win the sprint, but the two did not get on and let themselves jointly be dropped at 4 km (2.5 mi) from the finish. De Vlaeminck beat Maertens for fourth place, acknowledging his mistake, but stated that "he did not want Maertens to win". In 1977 their rivalry culminated in what became a peculiar race. Maertens punctured on the Koppenberg and was given
686-467: A larger build than the average road racing cyclist, combining the strength of their legs with their upper body to produce a short burst of speed necessary in a closely contested finish. Some sprinters have a high top speed but may take a longer distance to achieve it, while others can produce short and sharp accelerations. Aerodynamics plays a key role in sprints. A sprinter is usually heavier, limiting their speed advantage to relatively flat sections. It
784-466: A lead of 30 minutes. Prizes during the war years were whatever the organisers could find, including boxes of razors, a stove, bottles of wine and cycling equipment. There were 100 francs in 1948 "for the last rider to reach the finish in Eeklo ." The last four riders in 1949 were given bottles of massage oil. In 1939, as World War II loomed, organizing magazine Sportwereld merged with Het Nieuwsblad ,
882-408: A lead seal, later with a ring similar to that fitted to racing pigeons. In that way the judges, or commissaires , could see if a rider had illegally changed bikes. The Ronde moved towards modern rules in 1951, with riders being allowed limited help from team cars and to combine with others from the same team on the road. By 1955 it was possible to accept a replacement bike from a teammate but not from
980-620: A letter of support from General Montgomery , confirming that he had hidden downed British pilots during the war and had protected them in his house. A rival Flemish newspaper, Het Volk , started the Omloop van Vlaanderen in 1945. Het Volk wanted to initiate a new cycling event in Flanders as a rival race to what it saw as the Ronde's closeness to the Nazis. The Ronde's organizers protested that
1078-564: A popular daily newspaper. During the war, many sporting events were cancelled, but the Tour of Flanders continued to be organized in agreement with the German command. The first wartime race in 1941 was won by Achiel Buysse . Because of road restrictions, the course was altered to poorly surfaced roads and paths, starting and finishing in Ghent and totalling just 198 km (123 mi). Despite
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#17327870225701176-614: A professional, won the event. The start and finish of the race in Ghent started to attract hordes of fans and by the end of the 1920s, the Ronde had become the pinnacle of the cycling season in Flanders. "La Ronde" is as much part of the heritage of the Flemish people as the processions of Veurne and Bruges , the festival of cats in Ypres or the ship blessing of Ostend . This cycle race
1274-469: A race run entirely on Flemish soil, crossing as many cities as possible, because "all Flemish cities had to contribute to the liberation of the Flemish people". The Tour of Flanders is the only classic to have been held on German-occupied territory during the Second World War and in full agreement with the German command. The Germans not only allowed and enjoyed the race but helped police
1372-560: A record seven Points classification in the Tour de France . He won three consecutive World Championship , one European Championship , two Monument races Paris–Roubaix and Tour of Flanders . The only three riders in cycling's history to win stages at all three grand tours in the same calendar year were all sprinters: Miguel Poblet in 1956, Pierino Baffi in 1958 and Alessandro Petacchi in 2003. A good sprint can also secure several victories for other specialists, such as Classics riders and GC -contenders. Seán Kelly won 21 stages in
1470-529: A select group on each of his wins, much to the discontent of fans and organisers. In order to preserve the Ronde's specific character, organisers increased the number of hills and searched for more backroads in the Flemish Ardennes . In 1973 the finish was moved to Meerbeke , not far after the Muur of Geraardsbergen , which became an iconic climb of the race and of Belgian cycling. Three years later
1568-565: A specialist sprinter, for when sudden bursts of speed are required, and another rider able to ride at a more consistent high tempo. The Complete Cycle Sport Guide , Peter Konopka, 1982, EP Publishing Tour of Flanders The Tour of Flanders ( Dutch : Ronde van Vlaanderen ), also known as De Ronde ( "The Tour" ), is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders , it
1666-460: A sprinter, attacked on the Muur of Geraardsbergen and rounded off a 20 km (12 mi) solo break. The race gained a place in cycling legend because a severe storm broke out in the second half of the race, with strong winds and torrential rainfall ravaging the peloton. Only 24 of 174 starters finished the race, the lowest number in modern times. In 1987 Claude Criquielion became the first French-speaking Belgian winner, with an attack after
1764-411: A sprinters' classic. Italian sprint star Mario Cipollini claimed three victories. Sean Kelly , Guido Bontempi , Djamolidine Abdoujaparov and Tom Steels are some of the other sprint specialists on the roll of honour. In 2003, Gent–Wevelgem abandoned its original start location Ghent and moved to suburban Deinze . Tom Boonen claimed his first classic victory in 2004 , later proceeding to equal
1862-522: A total distance of 5.2 km (3.2 mi). The COVID-19 pandemic led to the change of calendar and that year's edition was postponed for the 11th of October. Riders in italics are still active Since 2012 a women's race of Gent–Wevelgem is held, on the same day as the men's event but over a shorter course. Unlike the men's race, the start is in Ypres and the course does not cover the hills in Northern France. The inaugural women's edition
1960-422: A two-times winner of the Tour de France , became the first French winner. Another Frenchman, Jean Forestier , won the following year . Flemish fans needed to get used to the many foreign riders excelling in Flanders, but the international prestige of the race increased fast. In the last 100 km (62 mi) of the race we were right behind the first riders. We barely saw them: there were so many people along
2058-509: A wheel by a spectator who pushed him all the way up. De Vlaeminck broke clear, but punctured shortly after and was caught by a returning Maertens. As both riders were alone at the front of the race, De Vlaeminck refused to work. For 70 km (43 mi), Maertens rode to the finish with De Vlaeminck on his wheel and was easily beaten by the latter in a two-man sprint. It was De Vlaeminck's only win. To this day, both protagonists make contradictory statements about what happened. Maertens stated that
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#17327870225702156-407: Is Milan–San Remo , won four times by Zabel and three times by three-time World Champion Óscar Freire . Other "flat" one day races considered important sprinter classics include Gent–Wevelgem , Scheldeprijs , Vattenfall Cyclassics , Paris-Brussels and Paris–Tours . Sprinting on a cycle track or velodrome ranges from the highly specialised sprint event (where two or more riders slowly circle
2254-629: Is addressed twice in quick succession. After the Katsberg , the second hill in France, the race re-enters Belgium after 50 kilometres (31 mi) on French roads, to enter the key section of the race in Heuvelland . The hill zone in the very south of West Flanders holds three climbs, the Baneberg, Monteberg and Kemmelberg , covered within twelve kilometres of one another. This succession of climbs
2352-568: Is interspersed with technical descents along narrow country roads, including the difficult descent of the Kemmelberg. The Kemmelberg is the hardest and most iconic climb of the race. After these three bergs , the course loops round and riders re-ascend the Baneberg–Monteberg-Kemmelberg sequence, covering a total of nine categorized climbs. After the top of the ultimate climb of the Kemmelberg, some 35 kilometres (22 mi) from
2450-530: Is on the calendar one week after the Tour of Flanders. The event had its only interruptions during World War I and has been organized without hiatus since 1919, the longest uninterrupted streak of any cycling classic. Seven men hold the record of most victories, making the Tour of Flanders unique among the major classics. Belgians Achiel Buysse , Eric Leman , Johan Museeuw , and Tom Boonen , Italian Fiorenzo Magni , Dutch Mathieu van der Poel and Swiss Fabian Cancellara each have three victories. Since 2004,
2548-568: Is part of the UCI World Tour and organized by Flanders Classics . Its nickname is Vlaanderens Mooiste ( Dutch for "Flanders' Finest"). First held in 1913 , the Tour of Flanders had its 100th edition in 2016 . Today it is one of the five monuments of cycling, together with Milan–San Remo , Paris–Roubaix , Liège–Bastogne–Liège and the Giro di Lombardia . It is one of the two major Cobbled classics , anticipating Paris–Roubaix, which
2646-619: Is the Kemmelberg , a fully cobbled hill road in Kemmel with gradients up to 23%, but equally notorious for its difficult and technical descent. The Kemmelberg, the highest point in the region, is the toughest climb and the emotional centrepiece of the race. Named after Camulos , the Celtic god of war, the Kemmelberg's summit lies atop a thickly wooded ridge which was the scene of the Battle of
2744-416: Is the most fabulous of all the Flemish festivals (kermesses) . No other race creates such an atmosphere, such a popular fervour. Walloon writer Paul Beving and his tribute to his northern countrymen's race Schroeders 1999 If the first Rondes were held to limited public success, by the 1930s its popularity had grown so spectacularly that vast masses of spectators along the roads and cars following
2842-493: Is therefore not uncommon for sprinters to be dropped by the peloton (also known as the 'bunch' or 'pack') if a race is through hilly terrain. Sprinters may have different preferences. Some prefer a longer "launch" while others prefer to ' draft ' or slipstream behind their teammates or opponents before accelerating in the final meters. Some prefer slight uphill finishes, while others prefer downhill finishes. In conventional road races, sprinters may bide their time waiting until
2940-484: The Bosberg , thereby relegating Sean Kelly to second place again. Classics specialist Kelly finished second on three occasions, but the Ronde remained the only monument classic he never won. In 1989 the race was included in the first UCI Road World Cup , a season-long competition comprising the 10 most important one-day cycling events. More riders specialized in the classics , with the Tour of Flanders scheduled as
3038-467: The Championship of Flanders on 12 September 1912. Van Wijnendaele became the editor of Sportwereld on 1 January 1913. All Flemish cities have to contribute to the liberation of the Flemish people Karel Van Wijnendaele on the conception of the Tour of Flanders, 1912. Much has been written about the link between cycling in Flanders and Flemish nationalism . Van Wijnendaele wanted to create
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3136-617: The Flemish Ardennes in East Flanders and included the climbs of Kwaremont, Kluisberg and Tiegemberg. From 1936 to 1939 the race ran from Ghent to Kortrijk , followed by local laps, including the Lauwberg as the main difficulty. After World War II, Gent–Wevelgem restyled with a new route across the Flemish Ardennes and the Heuvelland region . The Edelareberg, Hoppeberg, Kwaremont , Zwarteberg and Rodeberg featured along
3234-534: The Kasselberg are cobbled, totaling a possible maximum of two kilometres of cobbled section, which is significantly less than the other cobbled races of Flanders and Northern France. Moreover, there are no flat sections of pavé and both cobbled climbs are in excellent condition, as they are part of a busy suburban traffic network. The first race was in 1934 on an all-flat route from Ghent 's St Pieter's Station to Wevelgem . The second edition in 1935 addressed
3332-542: The Tour de France and twice the Points classification . He also built his legend by winning titles ahead of major cyclists, as the 1955 French National Championship ahead of Louison Bobet and the 1956 Giro di Lombardia ahead of Fausto Coppi . He finished on the podium of the World Championship 4 times in a row and won the title in 1959. Freddy Maertens only participated in six grand tours but took home
3430-533: The Tour of Flanders (like Rudi Altig and Jan Raas ), Paris–Roubaix ( Eddy Planckaert ) and the Giro di Lombardia (like André Darrigade ) or even stage races (in addition to the aforementioned Leducq , Rodríguez , Maertens , Saronni and Moser , they include Rudi Altig , Sean Kelly and Laurent Jalabert who all won the Vuelta, as did 1968 Tour de France winner and all-rounder Jan Janssen . The ultimate sprinter classic due to its relatively flat course
3528-673: The Trophy of Flanders , organizers introduced climbs in French Flanders : Zwarteberg, Mont Cassel , Katsberg and Wouwenberg preceded the Kemmelberg. In 1958, these Franco-Flemish climbs were not included: the pre- Schengen border crossing caused too many administrative burdens. After the run-up to the coast, the route featured only the Rodeberg, Vidaigneberg and Kemmelberg climbs in Heuvelland. In 1960 scheduling conflicts marked
3626-420: The bergs and the chasing peloton unfolds on the 35-kilometre flat roads towards the finish. Despite its reputation as a sprinter's classic, Gent–Wevelgem's breakaways frequently hold off their pursuers because of the unpredictable terrain. Although media usually classify Gent–Wevelgem as a cobbled classic, the route actually has very few sections of cobbled roads. Only the Kemmelberg and the upper stretches of
3724-436: The gendarmerie to control the plague of race-followers as much as possible, but to limited effect. The 1937 race was exceptionally chaotic with several accidents, causing race organizers to have the entire course secured by motorized police, in those days a revolutionary move. From then, the situation started to improve somewhat. In sporting terms, the race grew more international with participants from France, Germany, Italy,
3822-434: The points classification in the Tour de France , the maillot vert (green jersey) is won by the race's most consistent sprinter. At the Tour de France, the most successful recipient of this honor is Slovak sprinter Peter Sagan , who has won seven Tour de France green jerseys (2012–2016, 2018–2019). Sprinters have a higher ratio of fast-twitch muscle fibers than non-sprinters. Road cycling sprinters sometimes tend to have
3920-420: The slipstream of another cyclist or group of cyclists tactically to conserve energy. Apart from using sprinting as a racing tactic, sprinters can also compete for intermediate sprints (sometimes called primes ), often to provide additional excitement in cities along the route of a race. In stage races, intermediate sprints and final stage placings may be combined in a points classification . For example, in
4018-496: The 100th anniversary of World War I, as the Westhoek region was at the heart of the war and is home to several Commonwealth war graves. The 2015 edition was won by Luca Paolini , but was particularly memorable as it was run in abysmal weather, with strong winds scourging the peloton. Several riders were blown violently off their bikes, including Geraint Thomas when he was leading the breakaway group, prompting media to describe
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4116-493: The 1930s. The first edition was run on 9 September 1934 as an amateur race on a flat, 120 km route. The race only had Belgian participants and was won by Gustave Van Belle . In 1936 the race distance was increased to 168 km and Robert Van Eenaeme was the first professional winner. The event had its only interruptions during World War II, and was subsequently organized again as a professional event in 1945. Gaston Rebry, by then president of bike club "Het Vliegend Wiel",
4214-533: The Lys in April 1918, in which more than 200,000 soldiers died. The climb has been controversial in the past because of several severe crashes in its descent. In 2007 French rider Jimmy Casper crashed heavily, suffering numerous facial and other fractures. In 2016 the climb was addressed by its steepest road for the first time in more than 20 years. After the Kemmelberg, the ultimate battle between breakaways formed on
4312-518: The Netherlands, Switzerland and Czechoslovakia . Belgians continued to dominate however and Romain Gijssels became the first to win two consecutive Rondes. The editions of 1934 and 1935 were exceptionally rainy, making the races gruelling contests of perseverance. The Ronde, in its first decades, followed the general rule that each racer was responsible for his own problems. Help from others
4410-504: The Overall Classification a few years later. Another successful sprinter of the interbellum was French allrounder André Leducq . Although he could do more than sprint alone, including winning stage races (winning the Tour de France twice) and classics, 15 of his total 25 stage victories in the Tour were in bunch sprints. André Darrigade is considered as the greatest French sprinter of all time. He won 22 stages in
4508-479: The Points Jersey on four occasions, winning 12 of his 15 Tour de France stage wins in a bunch sprint. His only participation in Vuelta a España in 1977 resulted not only in a record 13 stage wins, but also in the win of the general classification. Just five days after finishing the Vuelta, he went on race the Giro d'Italia , where he won 7 stages before having to abandon the race after a crash halfway through
4606-618: The Tour and Vuelta, and the Points Classifications of both races four times each, in addition to his nine major Classics wins. Likewise, Belgian classics specialists Rik Van Steenbergen , Rik Van Looy and Roger De Vlaeminck were very successful due to a good final sprint, as were Italian Giro d'Italia -winners Bepe Saronni and Francesco Moser and their compatriot and two-time World Champion, Paolo Bettini . Conversely, many sprinters use their abilities to win more than just stages, and were successful in classics such as
4704-461: The Tour de France. Erik Zabel won a record nine points classifications: six in the Tour de France and three in the Vuelta a España . Of the five riders to win the Points classification in all three Grand Tours, three were pure sprinters: Djamolidine Abdoujaparov , Alessandro Petacchi and Mark Cavendish . The other two were all-rounders Eddy Merckx and Laurent Jalabert . Peter Sagan won
4802-507: The beginning of the 20th century, cycling was in a poor state in Belgium. Velodromes were closing and national championships on the road or track were no longer organised. The one major Belgian race, Liège–Bastogne–Liège , was in the French-speaking South . As the gloom increased, Odile Defraye became the first Belgian winner of the Tour de France in 1912. He was a 20-year-old Fleming and, although he rode for Alcyon ,
4900-513: The controversial Koppenberg was included. It marked the beginning of some sensational editions of the race. In 1975 Eddy Merckx concluded his second win after another memorable raid to the finish. Merckx, in the rainbow jersey, escaped from the peloton together with Frans Verbeeck with 104 km (65 mi) to ride, before distancing his worn-out companion 6 km (3.7 mi) before Meerbeke. In 1976 Freddy Maertens and Roger De Vlaeminck , two of Belgium's star riders, were part of
4998-553: The dangerous cobbled descent and potential new crashes. In 2010 the Franco-Flemish hills of Kasselberg, Scherpenberg, Katsberg, and Berthen were re-introduced, before ensuing the traditional route in the Heuvelland hills. In recent years the city of Ypres features prominently in the race finale. In the context of the Centenary of the outbreak of World War I , the peloton crosses the city centre and leaves it passing under
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#17327870225705096-465: The early stages of the race, splits and echelons at this point frequently see 40 to 60 riders eliminated from the running. Subsequently, after hours of pounding across the Flanders flatlands and the occasional excursion to Northern France, the riders approach the hill zone in Heuvelland , which features the day's most difficult ascents. The hills are at the heart of the action and usually the sites where breakaways are formed. The race's most renowned climb
5194-631: The end of the Trophy of Flanders and the race placed itself on the calendar between the more prestigious classics the Tour of Flanders and Paris–Roubaix. In 1961 Gent–Wevelgem implemented a two-day course, a one-year novelty. The race ran from Ghent to Antwerp on the first day and to Wevelgem on the second. From 1962 to 1976 Gent–Wevelgem ran via the coast to Heuvelland, with the Rodeberg, Vidaigneberg and Kemmelberg as fixed venues, sometimes supplemented with Monteberg, Baneberg, Sulferberg, Goeberg, Suikerberg ( Sugar Hill ), Kraaiberg and Scherpenberg. In 1977,
5292-588: The field was 47 and the organization still struggled to find enough financial resources. A disappointed van Wijnendaele later said: Sportwereld was so young and so small for the big Ronde that we wanted. We had bitten off more than we could chew. It was hard, seeing a band of second-class riders riding across Flanders, scraping up a handful of centimes to help cover the costs. The same happened in 1914. No van Hauwaert, no Masselis, no Defraeye, no Mosson, no Mottiat, no Van Den Berghe, all forbidden to take part by their French bike companies. However, there were hints of
5390-468: The fifth win in seven years by a Dutch rider. Van der Poel beat Ireland's Sean Kelly and Canadian Steve Bauer in a four-man sprint. However, the decade will forever be remembered for the apocalyptic edition of 1985 , won by Eric Vanderaerden . The 23-year-old Belgian suffered a broken wheel before the Koppenberg, but returned to the front of the race in a group with Hennie Kuiper , Greg LeMond and his teammate Phil Anderson . Vanderaerden, considered
5488-520: The finish, the course invariably ensues on a long and flat run-in to Wevelgem. The finish is on the Vanackerestraat, Wevelgem's central avenue. The essential ingredients of Gent–Wevelgem have remained the same for decades. First to take their toll on the peloton, in the opening 100 kilometres, are the crosswinds and often rainy weather on exposed, flat roads across Flanders’ largest open plain. As teams try to protect and position their captains in
5586-426: The finish. Conditions improved in the 1930s and riders were allowed to accept a rain jacket, a spare tyre and a pump, but only in an emergency and at the judges' discretion. A change of bike was allowed only if a frame, wheel or handlebar broke, but riders were still expected to ride with spare tyres and a pump. Riders in the 1940s had to hand their bikes to officials the day before the race to have them identified with
5684-419: The growing status of the race as a symbol of Flemish nationalism (see above). Marcel Buysse , one of Flanders' cycling icons in the early 20th century, insisted on entering the race, against the order of his French Alcyon team that forbade Belgian riders to participate. Buysse took part in the second edition in 1914 as one of the favourites and won the sprint of a group of six on the velodrome of Evergem , in
5782-405: The hills of the Flemish Ardennes were addressed for the last time to date, featuring eleven significant climbs, including Koppenberg , Edelareberg, Kattenberg, Varent, Kluisberg and Tiegemberg. In 1993, the Franco-Flemish hills made their re-appearance but were omitted again in 1996. In 2008 , the route was substantially modified, following the race's status as a UCI Pro Tour event. The distance
5880-778: The iconic Menin Gate , arguably the most famous Flanders Fields memorial, before proceeding on the final run-in to the finish in Wevelgem. The 2017 race saw the addition of three so-called Plugstreets in Ploegsteert Wood , semi-paved gravel roads at the Ploegsteert Memorial to the Missing , to commemorate the Christmas truce of 1914 . The three Plugstreets were integrated between the two Kemmel climbs, with
5978-566: The judges had told him he would be disqualified for his illegal wheel-change and that De Vlaeminck had offered him 300.000 francs to keep riding. De Vlaeminck denies this, saying that he tactically stayed on Maertens' wheel, whom he considered the better sprinter. After the race, the controversy heightened even more, when Maertens and third-place finisher Walter Planckaert tested positive for doping and were both disqualified. The 1980s were monopolized by Dutch and Belgian riders. Dutchman Jan Raas won twice and in 1986 Adri van der Poel concluded
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#17327870225706076-414: The last few hundred metres before putting on a burst of speed to win the race. Many races will finish with a large group sprinting for the win; some sprinters may have team -mates, so-called domestiques 'leading them out' (i.e., keeping pace high and sheltering the sprinter) so that they have a greater chance of finishing in the leading positions. These teammates tend to "peel off" one by one as they tire;
6174-522: The last teammate is known as the "lead-out sprinter" and the best of them are excellent sprinters in their own right. Several of the Classic one day races, for example Milan–San Remo or Paris–Tours , tend to favour sprinters because of their long distance and relatively flat terrain. A long day of racing does not benefit a sprinter per se, but very long stages or one day races tend to preclude successful breakaways and otherwise aggressive racing, ensuring
6272-546: The morning in Ghent and finished in Mariakerke , now a suburb of Ghent . It covered 330 kilometres (210 mi), all on bad roads with just the occasional cycle path . The race finished on a wooden velodrome that circled a pond in Mariakerke, where ticket sales covered only half the prizes. The first race in 1913 was won by 25-year-old Paul Deman , who won the sprint of a six-man group after more than 12 hours in
6370-611: The name was too close to their own – in Dutch there is little difference between Ronde and Omloop . The Belgian cycling federation demanded that Het Volk change the name of their event. That race became the Omloop Het Volk , nowadays the opening race of the Belgian cycling season. On 25 May 1913 Karel van Wijnendaele organized the first Tour of Flanders, crossing the two western provinces of Flanders . It started at six in
6468-580: The professional event. Most routes pass through the Menin Gate in Ypres, flirt with the French border, tackle the Kemmelberg before turning back towards Wevelgem. There are 5.000 participants on average; 40% of which are non-Belgians. Cycling sprinter A sprinter is a road bicycle racer or track racer who can finish a race very explosively by accelerating quickly to a high speed, often using
6566-448: The race 5' 36" ahead of Felice Gimondi , the biggest margin ever. In the 1970s the Tour of Flanders needed a new identity. The asphalting of many of the traditional roads and hills made the race less demanding and more riders were able to keep up with the best. Eric Leman became the local hero when he won three times in four years, thereby equalling Buysse and Magni's record. Sprint specialist Leman outsprinted Eddy Merckx as part of
6664-409: The race as "mayhem" and "one of the wildest bike races in recent years". Only 39 riders finished the race. The 2016 edition was marred by the death of Belgian rider Antoine Demoitié , suffering fatal injuries from a crash and collision with a motor bike. Peter Sagan won the 2018 event , marking Sagan's third Gent–Wevelgem title and sixth podium finish, thereby becoming the most successful rider in
6762-529: The race had turned the Tour of Flanders into a true cultural festival. By 1933, there were 164 participants and seven times as many cars and motorbikes in the race caravan. This booming of the event brought inevitable problems of safety. In 1937 writer and Flemish literary icon Stijn Streuvels wrote to Sportwereld that the Ronde, as seen from his house in Ingooigem , was "more a procession of cars than of riders." Race director Karel van Wijnendaele spoke of
6860-631: The race starts in Deinze , East Flanders , 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) southwest of Ghent . After the unofficial start on the city's Market Square, the route heads west, facing 100 kilometres through the wind-swept flatlands of West Flanders , up to and along the North Sea coast before turning south into the North department of France. After 120 km comes the cobbled Kasselberg climb in Cassel , which
6958-428: The race three times. Sagan also achieved a record six podium finishes in the race. Created in 1934 and originally run by the newspaper Gazet van Antwerpen , the race's finish town of Wevelgem was selected because it was the home town of the event's first owner, local textile manufacturer Georges Matthijs. Its origin is a tribute to Gaston Rebry , a native of Wevelgem, who was one of the stars of cycling in Belgium in
7056-511: The race was included in the inaugural UCI ProTour and in 2011 in its successor, the UCI World Tour . Since 2011 it is organized by Flanders Classics , which also organizes the Tour of Flanders. Since 2012 a woman's event is held on the same day as the men's race, included in the inaugural UCI Women's World Tour in 2016. Six riders share the record of victories. Belgians Robert Van Eenaeme , Rik Van Looy , Eddy Merckx and Tom Boonen , Italian Mario Cipollini and Slovak Peter Sagan each won
7154-509: The race will come down to a bunch sprint. Most editions of these races end in a bunch sprint, often won by racers also successful in the points classification at stage races. Stronger sprinters with abilities in hilly terrain or on cobblestones also have good prospects of winning the Ardennes classics or the Cobbled classics respectively. The first great pure sprinter in the Tour de France
7252-408: The race's history. Unlike most of the Flemish spring classics, which centre around Oudenaarde and the plentiful hills in the Flemish Ardennes , Gent–Wevelgem travels west into West Flanders and Northern France and has fewer hills, providing it with a different character and making it more suitable for sprinters. In recent years the total distance of the race was around 250 km. Since 2004,
7350-562: The race, distanced his rival Briek Schotte in the final kilometres and stunned followers by becoming the youngest winner ever at 19. In 1948 the Tour of Flanders was included in the first running of the Challenge Desgrange-Colombo , cycling's first international season-long competition, which had spurred its status as an international event. Until the Second World War, the Tour of Flanders had been held on
7448-528: The race. Journalist Louis De Lentdecker in Het Nieuwsblad on the never-ending influx of spectators, 1963 In 1961 Tom Simpson became the first British winner in a controversial two-man sprint against Italian Nino Defilippis . Defilippis was the faster sprinter, but stopped pedalling too early because a finishing banner had been blown away and was foiled by Simpson. The influence of spectators never ended. Crowds stood in huge masses along
7546-405: The race. As the sport of cycling progressed into one of more specialized riders in the 1980s, bunch sprints became the arena of specialists – pure sprinters like Guido Bontempi , Jean-Paul van Poppel and Mario Cipollini , all focusing primarily on sprint stages, with other riders (classics specialists, time trialists, climbers etc.) aiming for victories in other types of stages. Cipollini holds
7644-477: The race. In 1957 the race became part of the short-lived Trophy of Flanders , a two-day formula with the Omloop Het Volk , in which Gent–Wevelgem was raced on Saturday, the Omloop on Sunday. In the 1960s the race garnered international prestige. Belgian cycling legends Rik Van Looy and Eddy Merckx won the race three times; Tour de France winner Jacques Anquetil was the first French winner in 1964. The race
7742-521: The race. Gérard Debaets , a specialist of six-day racing in the American circuit, won the race twice; in 1924 as one of only 17 finishers in dreadful weather conditions. Swiss Heiri Suter became the first foreign winner in 1923 and achieved the first ever cobbled races "double" win with Paris–Roubaix one week later. In 1926 , a group of ten sprinted to the finish. Five of them crashed heavily and Denis Verschueren , competing in his first race as
7840-788: The record for most stage wins in the Grand Tours as a sprinter; 57, of which 42 were in the Giro d'Italia . Fellow Italian sprinter Alessandro Petacchi (48 stage wins) won stages and the Points Classification in all three grand tours, including 20 stage wins in the Vuelta . The record for stage wins in the Vuelta belongs to Delio Rodríguez , with 39 wins. Mark Cavendish was named the Tour de France's best sprinter of all time by French paper L'Équipe on July 15, 2012. His tally currently stands on 52 individual stage wins in Grand Tours, 35 of which have been bunch sprints in
7938-401: The road and on the road that you had the impression of drowning in a tsunami. In front of me, behind me and beside me I saw cars being driven crazily through orchards, on the sidewalks, along cycle paths, behind spectators, in front of spectators. I felt bumps and bangs on the back of our car. If there were no accidents it was only because our dear Lord and his guardian angels were the best men in
8036-512: The roads and the finish was moved to Gentbrugge , in order to cope with the ever-growing number of spectators. Rik Van Looy took his second win in 1962 as world champion amid hordes of fans, securing his status as flag-bearer of Belgian cycling. In 1969 the young Eddy Merckx , on his way to becoming a cycling legend, took over this role when he broke clear from the pack with 73 km (45 mi) to go. In bad weather and despite objection from his team manager, he maintained his effort and won
8134-475: The route as well. This led to accusations of collaboration in an age where many Flemish nationalists had strong ties with Nazi Germany . After the War, De Standaard and Het Algemeen Nieuws-Sportwereld were sequestered by the state and several journalists, largely non-sports reporters, were sentenced for collaboration. Van Wijnendaele was forbidden to work as a journalist for life – a ban lifted when he produced
8232-630: The saddle. Deman went on to win Bordeaux–Paris in 1914, but his career almost ended with World War I . He joined Belgium's espionage underground war effort and smuggled documents into the neutral Netherlands by bike. After many trips he was arrested by the Germans, jailed in Leuven and held for execution. The Armistice of 1918 saved his life and he became a war hero. The first race consisted of 37 riders, followed by five assistance cars. In 1914
8330-484: The same day as Milan–San Remo , Italy's biggest cycling classic. Prominent Italian and French riders preferred the latter which explains why there was only a single non-Belgian winner before the war. The organisers changed the date to meet the needs of the Challenge Desgrange-Colombo. The 1948 edition featured a record 265 participants, of which 50 non-Belgians, the largest peloton ever to take
8428-591: The start. Briek Schotte won his second Ronde . Italian Fiorenzo Magni was the first exponent of the internationalization. The Tuscan achieved an unprecedented three consecutive victories in just four participations. The Tours of 1950 and 1951 set the tone, with solo wins by the Italian in cold weather. In 1951 Magni attacked with 75 km (47 mi) to go and finished 5' 35" ahead of Frenchman Bernard Gauthier . Attilio Redolfi came in third at 10' 32" from Magni. In 1955 cycling great Louison Bobet , by then
8526-404: The track looking to gain a tactical advantage before launching a finishing burst over the final 200 metres, which is timed), to massed-start events decided by the first across the line after a certain number of laps (similar to road racing). The sprint specialist may also ride short track time trials over 1000 metres, the team sprint and Keirin events. In Madison racing, a team may comprise
8624-430: The vicinity of Ghent. The distance was scaled back to 264 kilometres (164 mi). The Tour of Flanders was interrupted for the duration of World War I and was resumed again without interruptions as from 1919. The interwar editions were marked by appalling road conditions and grisly landscapes in war-ridden Flanders, but the Tour of Flanders gained popularity fast. In the 1920s Flemish track specialists dominated
8722-449: The war conditions, the 1940s were the remarkable scene of some of the race's most famous champions. Achiel Buysse became the first rider to win three times. Briek Schotte and Rik Van Steenbergen gained two victories and became the leading figures of Belgian cycling. Schotte linked his named indelibly to the race with two victories, 20 starts, eight podium finishes and several memorable exploits. In 1944 young Rik Van Steenbergen controlled
8820-520: The way. In 1947 and 1948 the course looped up to and along the North Sea coast for the first time. From 1949 to 1954 the Flemish Ardennes returned, followed by the Heuvelland hills of Rodeberg and Vidaigneberg. In 1955 the Kluisberg and Kemmelberg made their first appearance. The road on the Kemmelberg was still unpaved. In 1956 the Eikenberg was included. In 1957, as Gent–Wevelgem was part of
8918-438: The winning record of three wins. For many decades, the race held a mid-week position between the Tour of Flanders and Paris–Roubaix . In 2011, the race was included in the UCI World Tour and returned to a Sunday date in the weekend between Milan–San Remo and the Tour of Flanders. Since 2015, the event is named Gent–Wevelgem – In Flanders Fields , after the iconic war poem by John McCrae . Organizers wanted to commemorate
9016-406: Was Frenchman Charles Pélissier who won eight stages in the 1930 Tour de France , still a record (shared with Eddy Merckx and Freddy Maertens ). A year later, Pélissier battled with Italian sprinter Raffaele di Paco in one of the first major sprinter clashes. Both won five stages. In the 1941 Vuelta a España , Delio Rodríguez won 12 stages, followed by 8 the next year. He even managed to win
9114-405: Was banned and riders carried spare tyres looped round their shoulders to cope with punctures. It could take two or three minutes to change and inflate a tyre, longer if it was cold or there were other problems. Tyres weighed around 500g (compared to currently around 200g). A rim or any other part of the bike that broke spelled the end of the race and still left the rider with the problem of getting to
9212-652: Was customary for publishers of newspapers and magazines to organise cycling races as a means of promoting circulation. We thought there was a lot we could do in Flanders . We also wanted to publish a paper aimed at the Flemish people in their own language and give them confidence as Flemish. We conducted a 10-year war with the French-speaking management of the national cycling federation in Brussels. And we won it. Race co-founder Karel Van Wijnendaele By
9310-410: Was in a constant search of identity and re-invention, as reflected in the regular route and calendar changes. In 1977 the distance was 277 km, the longest edition ever, featuring eleven climbs in the Flemish Ardennes and a double ascent of the Kemmelberg . The arduous edition was won by Bernard Hinault , claiming his first international success. Since the 1980s the race has built a reputation as
9408-437: Was increased from ca. 200 km to 235 km. The course no longer ran along long coastal stretches, but instead approached Veurne from the polders . More climbs in Heuvelland were inserted: Zwarteberg, Baneberg, Rodeberg, Vidaigneberg and Monteberg preceded the double ascent of the Kemmelberg. As a consequence of the heavy crashes of the 2007 race , the Kemmelberg was approached from the village of Kemmel, in order to avoid
9506-429: Was the new race director. Robert Van Eenaeme was declared winner of the first post-War edition, surprisingly ten days after the race was over, after officials had closer inspected the photo finish . In 1947 Gent–Wevelgem was granted a springtime date on the calendar and gained prestige. Organizer Rebry managed to line up Italian cycling icons Gino Bartali and Fausto Coppi , who attracted vast numbers of spectators to
9604-521: Was won by British rider Lizzie Armitstead after a 40-km solo breakaway. Since 2016 the race is included in the UCI Women's World Tour , cycling's top-tier female elite competition. Since 2009, a cyclosportive is organized on the day before the professional event. There are four distances, ranging from 60 km to 215 km. All courses start and finish in Wevelgem , at the finishing location of
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