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Thursday, April 2, 2026

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Dwars door Vlaanderen reports

We posted the race organizer's report with the results.

Here's the report from winner Filippo Ganna's Team INEOS Grenadiers:

Filippo Ganna took his first one-day victory of his career, after a powerful and determined performance at Dwars door Vlaanderen to cap off a huge front-foot team effort.

Ganna caught an earlier solo breakaway from Wout Van Aert (Visma - Lease A Bike) to take the win in stunning fashion, with a chasing peloton just moments behind.

An early breakaway group of 18 riders forced a response from the Grenadiers, with Kim Heiduk, Josh Tarling and Sam Watson driving the chase and committing fully to bring the race back together inside the final 80km.

As the race intensified, further splits formed. Watson and Magnus Sheffield briefly featured in a group of 12, with Watson especially active, launching multiple moves to keep the pressure on. With 55km to go, Ganna made his first acceleration, testing the legs of his rivals, though the move proved short-lived.

The race properly ignited on the Eikenberg as Wout van Aert launched a decisive attack, going clear at the front. Shortly after, Ganna was momentarily set back by a mechanical issue, but he responded calmly and efficiently to rejoin the peloton without losing touch.

Up the road, Sheffield remained active in a chasing group alongside Tim van Dijke (Red Bull–Bora–Hansgrohe) and Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates - XRG), helping to keep the gap in check. As the race entered its decisive phase, the groups began to merge, and with 15km remaining, Ganna powered his way back to the front just as the race came back together.

Sensing his moment, Ganna attacked again with 6km to go, committing fully in a series of all-out efforts toward the finish. Heading into the final 2km, he launched alongside Vermeersch before pressing on solo under the flamme rouge.

In a dramatic finale, Ganna caught Van Aert inside the final 100 metres, with the chasing peloton just seconds behind, to take the victory.

Ganna catches Wout van Aert shortly before the finish line. Sirotti photo

“Today the team did an amazing job for me and gave me a massive support. In the end, I tried to give back all the support they gave me with an amazing victory. For sure, Wout gave an impressive performance and to catch him was not easy but my legs supported me to the finish line and it’s an amazing victory for me.

“It was a massive effort [to catch Wout].The last corner was when I started believing. The group behind was chasing really fast and I thought they’d catch me. I’m really happy and I hope it’s good morale for the team for the next races.

“I was a bit unlucky in the first part. I hope all the bad luck was just today at the start. I was feeling good and I tried to help my teammates. This is one of the most important of my wins this season, especially here in the ‘universe of cycling’. It’s really, really nice for me.”

Here's the report from second-place Wout van Aert's Team Visma | Lease a Bike:

Wout van Aert finished second at Dwars door Vlaanderen. An impressive solo by the Team Visma | Lease a Bike leader came up just short in the final stretch, as Filippo Ganna took the victory.

The start for the 80th edition of Dwars door Vlaanderen was given in Roeselare once again this year. Riders faced a 184-kilometer course, featuring two new climbs compared to last year: the Hellestraat and the Onderbossenaarstraat. Team Visma | Lease a Bike had former winner Christophe Laporte at the starting line.

The race began at a blistering pace, with multiple attacks failing to stick. After about an hour of racing, a breakaway from two riders saw sixteen riders joining, including Laporte and Matthew Brennan. This group held together until just past the Hotond, where the move eventually fell apart. It was young Per Strand Hagenes from Team Visma | Lease a Bike who launched a furious attack on the Berg Ten Houte. The peloton split apart, and riders were forced to drop one by one. There was never a real break, only a relentless attrition battle.

On the second passage of the Hotond, Niklas Larsen and Romain Grégoire managed to gain a small gap on the peloton, but on the flanks of the Eikenberg, van Aert showed that his form is on the rise. He had already made his presence felt earlier on the Onderbossenaarstraat, but on the Eikenberg, the Kempen native surged hard and quickly joined the leading duo. With a powerful acceleration, van Aert set a pace that many could not match. On the Nokereberg, he pushed again, forcing Grégoire to drop back, and in the final part of the race, van Aert went solo, leaving Larsen behind as well.

Wout van Aert off the front with Niklas Larsen on his wheel. Sirotti photo.

In the closing stage of the race, in the final 150 meters, the 31-year-old was caught by Filippo Ganna, who took the win just in time. Van Aert finished second, while Soren Waerenskjold completed the podium in third.

“Frustrating when you’re this close,” van Aert said after the race. “I absolutely believed I could win in the final half-hour, but then to see it slip away with only 150 meters to go is incredibly disappointing.”

“We worked well together when the three of us were up front, but I felt I was the stronger rider and the pace dropped too much. I heard on the radio that the peloton was still riding fast, so I had to try something. Once I dropped Niklas with 10 kilometers to go, there was no turning back, I focused entirely on my own effort and barely looked back. Unfortunately, the race was 150 meters too long.”

Still, van Aert took positives from his final test ahead of the Tour of Flanders. “I felt good all day and gave everything I could. I have to take confidence from that. Now I’ll take it a bit easier in the coming days and look forward to Sunday.”

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Here's the Dwars door Vlaanderen report from fourth-place Biniam Girmay's NSN Cycling team:

Biniam Girmay recorded his sixth top-five finish – and best Spring Classics result – of the season so far at Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday, narrowly missing out on a podium after a dramatic finish.

One day before his 26th birthday, Biniam finished fourth, narrowly placing second in the bunch sprint after long-range attacker Wout Van Aert was pipped to victory in sight of the line by Filippo Ganna.

Binaim Girmay wins the 2026 Clasica de Almeria. Sirotti photo

“A podium would have been nice, but at least we’re back in the game,” says Biniam. “That’s important.”

Today’s showing from his teammates was also encouraging, with the race forming part of the Belgian “Holy Week”, which culminates with the Ronde Van Vlaanderen on Sunday.

Matîs Louvel, Riley Sheehan, and Lewis Askey all showed encouraging signs of form, with the trio either spending time in short-lived attacks or contributing to bring back others, during a race that averaged 48.483kph.

“It was a tough race from the start,” adds Biniam. “It was not easy to control because everybody wanted to make the race hard.

“In the end, most attacks came back, but we saw how strong Wout and Ganna are. We tried for the podium by winning the sprint [for third place], but fourth is OK.”

Ninth-place Vito Braet's Team Lotto-Intermarché posted this Dwars Door Vlaanderen report:

Vito Braet finished ninth in Dwars door Vlaanderen. Braet sprinted from the chasing group to secure another strong placing in the World Tour. “I seized my opportunity; this is definitely a boost.”

Dwars door Vlaanderen is traditionally the final race before the Holy Week really gets underway, and then you know the pace will be high. An average speed of 48.5 kilometers per hour, to put it in numbers- the fastest Dwars door Vlaanderen in history. It was on the Eikenberg that the race really exploded. At that point, Cedric Beullens and Vito Braet were still up front for Lotto–Intermarché. “I saw Wout Van Aert attack, but he was simply too fast,” Braet said. “Everyone is realistic at such a moment. You know it’s difficult to follow him. Then you have to seize your chance in the group behind.”

Braet has a strong sprint, as he already showed with his second place in stage one of Paris–Nice at the beginning of March. “Of course, Paul Magnier and Jasper Philipsen were also in that chasing group. Those are not slow guys. I thought, I’ll stay on their wheel. If that works, I’ll stay in that group. Today Arnaud De Lie was our leader, but he crashed early. Then you have to take your chance, and that’s what I did. This result is definitely a boost.”

Jenno Berckmoes crashed early in the race and was taken to the hospital in Oudenaarde. Fortunately, examinations revealed no fractures. Berckmoes is left with a bruised right elbow from the crash. He will be closely monitored with a view to the Tour of Flanders next Sunday.


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Paul Magnier's Team Soudal Quick-Step posted this Dwars Door Vlaanderen report:

Soudal Quick-Step put in a strong display at the 80th edition of Dwars door Vlaanderen, the first World Tour race of the month, going on the attack, being involved in many of the day’s main moves and pulling hard in the finale for a bunch sprint with Paul Magnier.

The Frenchman was one of the 20-odd riders present in the first group that went clear after 70 kilometers, putting the pressure on the peloton, who eventually came back and kept together, but only for a brief moment. Other men made a move, taking advantage of the many hills that came one after the other, and split the bunch. Soudal Quick-Step did an excellent job, chasing the attackers and reabsorbing them before the last 50 kilometers.

Paul Magnier at the start of 2026 Tirreno-Adriatico stage four. Sirotti photo

When three riders surged away and managed to open what looked to be a 40-second winning buffer, it was Dylan van Baarle, who hit the front of the peloton, producing a huge effort to reduce the gap that separated them to just 12 seconds ahead of the day’s last hill. The finale was a nail-biting one, with the bunch having in sight the lone leader of the race as they entered the closing kilometers.

An attack of Filippo Ganna (Ineos Grenadiers) saw him get a gap before making the catch. With one final effort, Pepijn Reinderink and Dries van Gestel reduced the distance, but Ganna managed to hold off the chasers for just a second and take the win in Waregem.

Paul Magnier was our team’s best placed rider from the group that sprinted behind the Italian and said afterwards: “It was a super hard race. I tried to get away with a strong group but we did not work together to stay clear. The team tried to control the race from there for as long as possible with Dylan and Pepijn, and in the end Dries tried to put me in the right place to compete for the sprint. They did a super good job and I want to thank them for that; the result is not there yet but if we continue to ride like we did, then the results will come.”

And here's the Dwars Door Vlaanderen report from Romain Grégoire's Team Groupama-FDJ United:

The Groupama-FDJ United cycling team tried everything this Wednesday at Dwars door Vlaanderen to secure the big result they were aiming for. First active in the early moves, the French team then gained an advantage thanks to Romain Grégoire, who broke away from the peloton more than fifty kilometres from the finish. The Frenchman, later joined by Wout Van Aert, was however caught fifteen kilometres from the line. In a thrilling final, Filippo Ganna eventually took victory, just ahead of a reduced peloton in which Axel Huens (16th) and Thibaud Gruel (20th) secured top-20 finishes.

The last stop before the Ronde on Sunday, Dwars door Vlaanderen was not only a final full-scale rehearsal but also another opportunity to achieve a strong result on Flemish roads. In any case, Groupama-FDJ United started in Roeselare with an attacking mindset for the 185-kilometre race featuring eighteen climbs and nineteen cobbled sectors. “We noticed that the group was strong in recent races,” explained Frédéric Guesdon. “So we wanted to take advantage of that today. The goal was to be proactive and not ride conservatively. It was the penultimate race in Flanders, and we didn’t want any regrets: we had to be involved in the moves and try to get the best possible result.”

So when the race reached its first key point, after 75 kilometres and the first ascent of the Berg ten Houte, Thibaud Gruel was right there. “There was a lot of racing early on, but without a real breakaway,” Frédéric explained. “The approach to Berg ten Houte was technical, Lidl-Trek forced the pace, and about fifteen riders got clear, including Thibaud. However, some big teams were missing at the front, so the peloton worked to bring it back.”

After twenty-five kilometres of chasing, the peloton regrouped, and everything had to be done again before the second ascent of Berg ten Houte. Wout Van Aert launched a first attack, Axel Huens held on, then Romain Grégoire and Valentin Madouas followed or initiated further moves.

Romain Grégroie racing in the 2025 Veneto Classic. Sirotti photo

“Clément, Cyril, and Jacobs were responsible for positioning, then it was up to the others to try things, on or between the climbs,” Frédéric said. With the repeated accelerations, the peloton was reduced to around sixty riders, but it was still relatively compact heading into the final ascent of Trieu, 55 kilometres from the finish. Romain Grégoire, Valentin Madouas, Thibaud Gruel, and Axel Huens were still well placed at the top, and on the approach to Hotond, Romain launched a well-timed attack. “After that, only one major climb remained, the Eikenberg,” Frédéric added. “So it was the ideal moment to anticipate the moves of the main favorites.”

The Groupama-FDJ United rider was joined by Niklas Larsen and Thomas Gachignard, and the trio took advantage of a lull in the peloton to build a maximum lead of forty seconds. “Once Romain was away, the others had to cover moves and disrupt the chase,” Frédéric said.

At the foot of the Eikenberg, 40 kilometres from the finish, the leaders still had a twenty-second advantage. At the top, only Romain Grégoire and Larsen remained ahead before Wout Van Aert bridged across. With the Belgian, the new trio extended their gap again, even pushing the peloton back to forty-five seconds with 25 kilometers to go. However, a few kilometers later, the rider from Besançon was dropped from the leading group on the Nokereberg.

“He paid for a slight lack of course knowledge, as he found himself positioned too early at the front,” Frédéric explained. “On that climb, it’s best to come from behind with speed, and unfortunately he got caught out there. That said, I didn’t really understand why Van Aert decided to push the pace at that moment. He probably would have been better off staying with the two others and going further. It was obviously a shame for us.” From then on, Romain Grégoire was caught first by a chasing group and then by the peloton 15 kilometers from the finish. “From that point, the others had to keep being active, because the attacks continued, and Valentin was up there,” Frédéric added.

On the non-cobbled climb of Nokere, nine kilometers from the finish, the former French champion tried to force a move but couldn’t get away. At the front, Wout Van Aert went solo but had the peloton chasing in the final five kilometers. “We wanted to keep Thibaud and Axel for the sprint,” Frédéric added. “They were a bit too far back in the final corner, then it went very fast to the finish, and they couldn’t move up.” Filippo Ganna took victory as a finisher, catching Wout Van Aert in the final straight, while Axel Huens finished 16th and Thibaud Gruel 20th a few bike lengths behind.

“Once again, the result doesn’t reflect our day,” Frédéric insisted. “We’re left wanting more from these Classics. The team is strong, we’re active, but the results aren’t coming. Hopefully it will come on Sunday. The Tour of Flanders is certainly a level above, but that might actually suit us. If we race well, we have what it takes to get a result.”


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Remco Evenepoel to race the Ronde van Vlaanderen for the first time

Here’s the news from Evenepoel’s Team Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe:

There are races – and then there is the Ronde van Vlaanderen. For Remco Evenepoel, it is more than a Monument. It is home.

On Easter Sunday, the 26-year-old will line up for the first time at the start of his “home Monument.” From Antwerp, a new chapter begins: 278 kilometers, 12 climbs and six cobbled sectors on the way to Oudenaarde – a race that in Belgium is not only ridden, but lived.

For more than a century, De Ronde has shaped cycling in Flanders. For generations of fans, it is the emotional pinnacle of the season. Now, Remco Evenepoel becomes part of that story.

Remco Evenepoel winning the fourth stage of the 2026 Volta la Comunitat Valenciana. Getty Sport photo

This project also carried significant weight within the team and has been carefully prepared over a long period. Ralph Denk, CEO of Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe, explains: “The connection between Remco and the Tour of Flanders is deep and emotional. A plan like this does not come together overnight. We deliberately kept it under the radar to create a special moment for the fans – revealing it as a surprise on April 1. The fact that we were able to keep this internal for more than 100 days speaks to the cohesion and unity of this team.”

Remco Evenepoel will be supported in Flanders by a well-drilled Classics squad. The provisional line-up includes Mick and Tim van Dijke, Gianni Vermeersch, Laurence Pithie as well as Jan Tratnik and Jarrad Drizners. Red Bull – BORA – hansgrohe brings a team to the start that has recently impressed with cohesion and strength.

On Sunday, it is about more than just a result. It is about a debut many have been waiting for – and about a rider stepping onto one of the biggest stages in the sport.