'Fighting mindset' - Tour de France winner Kasia Niewiadoma embraces 'full gas' racing at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad to prepare for bigger targets

Tour de France winner Kasia Niewiadoma will line up at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad expecting a full-gas race that will help her prepare for bigger targets during the Spring Classics campaign and summer stage racing season. 

The Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto leader predicted that the last two hours of racing would be the toughest but that she would aim to get over the decisive Muur van Geraardsbergen with the front group to contest the win in Ninove.

“I love Classic racing. The quicker I can start them, the better I can get for my target races. Nieuwsblad is very hard, especially in the last two hours. It is just all out on every sector and climbs, and you only have the descents to recover. This kind of racing forces you to switch into the fighting mindset needed for the whole spring," Niewiadoma said.

After an outstanding 2024 season where she won the Tour de France and Flèche Wallonne, Niewiadoma heads into the Belgian classics opener as one of the favourites alongside other contenders Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez), Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck), and Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx-Protime).

Niewiadoma has been a staple on the start line at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad but her best performances were ninth in 2014 and seventh last year. Her teammate Tiffany Cromwell won the 2013 edition and the pair will be joined by Chiara Consonni, Soraya Paladin, Alice Towers and Maike van der Duin on Saturday.

The 137.9km route from Gent to Ninove will showcase the main ascents in the last half; Edelareberg, Wolvenberg, Molenberg, Leberg, Berendries, Elverenberg Vossenhol, and the final one-two punch of the Muur and Bosberg before a fast run-in to the finish line.

“I always want to do my best and with that, there are some ambitions associated. From past editions, you can see that the winner is decided on the Muur, so I want to get over it in the front – powering through and not just holding onto the nearest wheel for dear life," she said.

The Polish all-rounder already started her racing season at the Setmana Valenciana where her compatriot and teammate Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka finished twice on the podium and sixth overall. She has spent the last two weeks fine-tuning her form ahead of the Spring Classics, then turns her attention to summer stage racing including a title defense at the Tour.

“It was an adjustment to go from winter training into full gas efforts at the start of stage one in Valenciana, but I was getting better with each day. Having two weeks between the last stage and Nieuwsblad has allowed me to fine-tune all the little details that needed more attention.”

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