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As we approach the decisive climbs of the race, which riders can we expect to launch attacks?
Visma-Lease a Bike’s Christope Laporte is one to watch. He looked great on the Muur yesterday, and has made the top eight in each of the last three editions of this race; and though normally he’d wait for a sprint, the fact he’s riding alongside fast-finisher Matthew Brennan, and the quality of the sprint field competing today, means he’s likely to take more of a front-foot approach this time.
As well as his Unibet Rose Rockets teammate Rory Townsend, Elmar Reinders has also abandoned the race.
“It’s far from the last climbs to the finish line”, Naesen added, “so I would expect to see a select peloton fighting for the sprint, maybe half of the guys from the start.”
He agreed that the absence of Mathieu van der Poel changes everything, “but I can imagine Mathieu in the bus last night asking himself do I really want to go on a 65 kilometre solo, ‘cos that’s what he’d need to do to win this race, and that’s not going to make for a comfortable Sunday.”
Oliver Naesen also spoke to Cyclingnews today before the race. A veteran of a huge number of Classics, Naesen is always one of the most insightful members of the peloton into one-day racing, and he views Kuurne as “being a battle between offensive Classics riders and sprinting Classics riders.”
The teams of sprinters Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek), Paul Magnier (Soudal-QuickStep) and Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) are among those showing their faces at the front of the peloton.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
BOSSENAARSTRAAT
We’re entering a new phase of the race, as they take on the Bossenaarstraat, the first of three climbs in quick succession.
And now another rider has fallen – Josh Burnett of the Burgos Burpellet BH team.
Townsend has abandoned the race, becoming the first DNF of the day.
Talking of crashes, more news has come in from yesterday’s chaotic Omloop – and it’s bad news for Stefan Küng. The Swiss classics specialist is set to miss the rest of the Spring after suffering a heavy fall.
There’s been a crash in the peloton involving a few riders, Rory Townsend seemingly the worst off.
At long last, after such a resillient chase, Adrià and Ingebrigtsen have joined the front group. Chapeau for the effort!
Regarding whether he’ll have his own chance, Groves said “We always go into it to work to deliver the best result for the team, and in that case it’s Jasper in a sprint. But if it’s an attacking final, we also need numbers in the front and that’s probably a role of mine.
With defending champion Jasper Philipsen in their line-up, and having won yesterday’s Omloop with Mathieu van der Poel, there will be an onus on Alpecin-Premier Tech to control this race and bring the breakaway back. One of their riders, Kaden Groves, spoke to Cyclingnews this morning:
“It was a really difficult stage yesterday, with the weather and all that, so we have to see how the legs are, but we think it’s gonna be a pretty chaotic race with the wind.”
(Image credit: Getty Images)
140KM TO GO
The peloton has well and truly sat up now, allowing the leading five an advantage of 2:25. In between, Adrià and Ingebrigtsen are still soldiering on, but are finding they can’t close the deficit of 25 seconds between themselves and the leaders.
Adrià and Ingebrigtsen, trying to join the leaders.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
150KM TO GO
The five leaders are 1:10 up on the peloton, while Adrià and Ingebrigtsen continue to dangle 20 seconds adrift.
Things haven’t fully calmed down in the peloton yet. There was a flurry of attackers trying to break and clear and attempt to bridge up to the leaders, but that move has been shut down.
The five riders up the road, who appear to have succeeded in forming the day’s break.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Meanwhile Adrià is still trying to join them with his compaion, Storm Ingebrigtsen. The pair are just 15 seconds behind.
It seems the peloton has at last sat up – the break’s lead is up to over a minute.
Biniam Girmay has had to stop for a mechanical.
160KM TO GO
The five-man break are now 23 seconds up on the peloton, and 16 ahead of Roger Adrià, who has also been joined by another rider.
And now Roger Adrià is setting off in pursuit of the five leaders. He’s the kind of bigger name the peloton may deem too dangerous to let go.
They’ve been joined by Johan Jacobs and Frits Biesterbos. This is looking promising.
Three riders have managed to go clear and build a small lead – Dries De Bondt, Cole Kessler and Matis Louvel.
Those ten attackers have succeeded in going clear, and the race is all back together again.
Ten attackers started the climb with a small gap over the peloton.
Attacks are being made as they climb the first obstacle of the day, the 1.4km, 3.6% Tiegemberg.
TIEGEMBERG
(Image credit: Getty Images)
With the final third of the race being completely flat without any bergs, Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne is a frontloaded race, and it won’t belong already until they reach the first of the day’s 13 climbs – the Tiegemberg.
Dries De Bondt tried to attack right from the get-go, but no break has formed yet.
Incidentally, the Tudor rider mentioned who broke his teeth, Rick Pluimers, was down to start today, but (understandably) has pulled out, along with his teammate Aivaras Mikutis. That leaves Tudor with just five starters.
The rain might mostly have held off yesterday, but that didn’t curtail the number of incidents, in what Arnaud De Lie described as being “the most dangerous Omloop of my life.” We summarised some of the fall-out from all of the drama.
It’s dry at the start for now, but the forecasts suggest that rain could potentially have a factor later in the day.
The riders are on the move, making their way through the neutralised zone. They’ll be racing before long.
One such sprinter is Jasper Philipsen, pictured here at the start with Dylan Groenewegen, and the Belgian is hoping to defend his title after the success of his teammate Van der Poel yesterday.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
The majority of the riders who competed at yesterday’s Omloop Nieuwsblad are present again today, although the parcours is more suited towards sprinters. That’s reflected in what is a more sprinter-heavy start list, featuring some of the fastest finishers in the world.
After sealing victory yesterday on what was his first race of the road season, Mathieu van der Poel is sitting this one out, paving the way for what looks set to be an open race.
If you haven’t already caught up with what happened during yesterday’s dramatic, incident-packed Omloop Nieuwsblad, be sure to read our report covering all the thrills and spills.
Coming up fast after yesterday’s Omloop Nieuwsblad, we’re back in the Belgian countryside for the second installment of Opening Weekend – Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne.
Hello and welcome to the 2026 Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne!
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