So much racing! Last Sunday, we had the very tough Tour of Flanders, and on coming up is the hardest one-day race of the year, Paris-Roubaix.
On Wednesday, the Scheldeprijs returns—flat, fast, and, more often than not, decided in one long drag race to the line in Schoten. It’s certainly not “easier” but it’s definitely without some of the challenges both Monuments have–there’s no bergs, crazy brutal cobbles, or punchy finales.
Men’s race
This year’s edition again lines up with sprinters hungry for the dub. Jasper Philipsen, Tim Merlier, Dylan Groenwegen–it may come down to one of these three. beat him the past two seasons—but the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider rarely misses a final sprint on this course. Merlier took the 2025 edition ahead of Philipsen.
There are two Canadians racing the 205.2-km race, one of whom definitely plans to be in the mix in the finale. Pinarello 36.5 Nick Zukowsky is there-he’s been riding well, but will most likely be working for fastman Matteo Moschetti. Modern Adventure Cycling–George Hincapie’s new ProTeam, has a contender with Riley Pickrell. He’s already had some good results in the sprints, and as his team gets more and more dialled in in the leadouts, look for a big result.
The route doesn’t offer much hiding. Starting in Terneuzen, the race cuts through exposed roads where crosswinds can split things early, before heading into Belgium for the familiar Schoten finishing circuit.
A cobbled section and the run along the Albert Canal adds a bit of oomph, but usually it all resets for the inevitable: a big ole sprint on the long finale.
Women’s race
Lidl-Trek’s Ava Holmgren is there, and she, like Zukowsky, will probably be working by covering breaks and trying to set something up for team leader and defending champ Elisa Balsamo. Other contenders include Lara Gillespie (UAE Team ADQ), Chiara Consonni (CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto), Charlotte Kool (Fenix-Premier Tech) and Nienke Veenhoven (Team Visma – Lease a Bike). The women will head out for 130 km.
You can watch both the men’s and women’s races on FloBikes.com. The women’s broadcast begins first at 7:00 a.m. EDT and the men’s at 9:45 a.m. EDT.
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