2021 Gent-Wevelgem Preview
Headlining Vlaamse Wielerwiek (at least until the Ronde) is Gent-Wevelgem, The Wind Classic. It boasts illustrious winners such as Luca Paolini, Edvald Boasson Hagen, and Marcus Burghardt. Oh, ok, and Sagan, Boonen, Cipollini, Kelly, Moser, Hinault, Merckx… Yeah, it’s a good one. Sorry if we fooled you two sentences ago.
Tough climbs and brutal weather combine to make this a difficult Belgian one-day race that’s perhaps undeserving of the connotations associated with being considered a sprinters’ classic. There are no easy rides in Gent-Wevelgem, and in 2015 only 39 riders finished the race.
Where to Watch
UK, Europe: Eurosport, GCN+
USA: FloBikes, Fubo.tv, GCN+ (Highlights)
Belgium: Sporza & RTBF
Route
As is becoming customary in 2021, the organizers have not been forthcoming with the route map for fear of putting the race at risk if spectators decide to show up. Don’t expect many changes from last year, however. Or do. Not sure what we’re allowed to say here. We have the road book that the teams and media get, and we can categorically say that you shouldn’t go spectate on that route above whether or not it’s correct.
Here’s the profile. From last year. Avert your eyes if you’re considering leaving your house to watch the race, just in case this year’s is similar.
Following a brutal final ascent of the 23% Kemmelberg, the race opens out for a 34km run-in on exposed, mostly straight roads. Expect echelons and the big teams taking control. As we head into the closing kilometer, it’ll likely be a sprint finish contested by a small bunch containing only the strongest, most durable sprinters in the field.
Startlist
2021 Gent-Wevelgem startlist (external site)
Ones to Watch
Mads Pedersen (Trek-Segafredo) – Last year’s winner took his victory from a small group, in turn within a peloton thinned by a packed post-lockdown race calendar. Victory in this year’s Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne, however, demonstrates that this was not just a lucky break. He’ll enter the race as a favorite.
Sam Bennett (Deceuninck-QuickStep) – In a straight sprint, the Irishman is the rider to beat right now. His win in the Classic Brugge-De Panne proves he can compete on similar terrain, and his team excels in these races. Nobody will give him any quarter, however, and his team will need to place a rider in a strong breakaway to convince the peloton to deliver Bennett to the finish line.
Arnaud Démare (Groupama-FDJ) – Sure, we’ll make this our official shout. He’s fast, he’s strong, and he’s braying for blood after missing out at De Panne due to technical problems.
Cees Bol (Team DSM) – With former winners Alexander Kristoff, Greg van Avermaet, and John Degenkolb lining up, plus many other talented sprinters and classics specialists, Cees Bol seems like a leftfield choice. And he is. Those wild choices sometimes pay off though, like the time we picked Alessandro Ballan to win Flanders. Trust us, we have a good feeling about this one. (Ed’s note: Um, do we?)
Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) – There are three riders head and shoulders above the rest in these types of races right now, but only one will take to the startline in Gent. Tired though we are of including his name in every single race preview, this race does suit him. A lot.