Kilojoules Magazine

Spectators await the peleton at the 2010 Tour of Flanders (Louise Ireland/Flickr)

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As we get set for the 79th edition of Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday, the cycling world eagerly awaits the second monument of the season. The Ronde van Vlaanderen looms, the cobbles are set, and a clash between cycling’s best is imminent. Here we will discuss what to expect, who to watch, and what’s at stake in the biggest Belgian race of the season.

This past weekends edition of the E3 Saxo Classic was one of the pre-Ronde tests, and the results were not surprising. What was anticipated to be a clash between the Netherland’s Matthieu van der Poel and Slovenia’s Tadej Pogaçar never materialized due to the late withdrawal of Pogaçar following the announcement of his inaugural participation in the French monument, Paris-Roubaix. The result was nothing short of the Van der Poel show, with the Dutchman launching the winning attack 39km’s from the finish on the Oude Kwaremont. Van der Poel finished a minute in front of Denmark’s Mads Pedersen, who put together an impressive performance after showing great form at Paris-Nice a few weeks prior. Pedersen gave comment to his performance post-race:

“…Matthieu was just on a different level on Kwaremont and he made the difference there, so yeah, I feel really happy after second place, normally I’m fighting to win but as I said, I never did really good in this race so this is a big step forward…but it’s also confirmation on the shape you know, it’s definitely there and it just shows that San Remo was not the best day I had but I know my shape is good and today I proved that, it’s just not easy when we have a monster like Matthieu racing. It doesn’t make it easier for the rest of us…”

Pedersen further affirmed his form with a win at Gent-Wevelgem two days later, and is expected to be among the select few riders battling with Van Der Poel at the Ronde van Vlaanderen, who has an undeniable target on his back after already having so much success in this young season. Other’s include Italy’s Fillipo Ganna, coming off a monumental effort and result in Milano Sanremo, the United States’s Matteo Jorgensen after a second consecutive victory in Paris-Nice, and of course Tadej Pogaçar, following another unsuccessful attempt at the illusive Sanremo win.

One of the biggest questions for many is the presence of Belgian’s hero Wout van Aert, who was nowhere to be seen in the top 10 of the E3 Saxo Classic. Van Aert spent a portion of March at altitude in Tenerife and seemed to be in flying form, taking maximal effort KOM’s on Strava among the world’s best climbers. Van Aert’s result may be explained by his arrival from altitude just 2 days before racing the E3, which gives us reason to expect a better performance from him at the Tour of Flanders. Regardless, Visma Lease-A-Bike will have options in their leadership with the flying form of Matteo Jorgensen ready to step in if Van Aert is not feeling his best.

The most anticipated event of the holy weekend will of course be the battle between Van der Poel and Pogaçar, both of whom will be eager to stoke the debate of who is the better classics rider. Pogaçar did everything he could to break Van der Poel at Sanremo, attacking tirelessly on the Cipressa and the Poggio, but Van der Poel had the last laugh beating Pogaçar and Ganna in 3 man sprint to secure the victory. Pogaçar, after starting his season with wins at the UAE Tour and a second consecutive Strade Bianche, will need all the momentum and confidence available ahead of what has become one of the most anticipated editions of Paris-Roubaix in recent history.

Whether you are a Van Aert, Pederson, Jorgensen or Ganna hopeful, or a spectator ready for the blossoming rivalry of Van der Poel and Pogaçar, the stakes are set and the energy is palpable for a Ronde van Vlaanderen that is sure to deliver.