Ronde van Brugge Women LIVE: A surprise winner in the bunch sprint after a tough day in West Flanders

Welcome to Cyclingnews' live coverage of the 2026 Ronde van Brugge Women.

The race has a fresh name for 2026, but will we have a different kind of race today? The wind is blowing out in West Flanders, but all signs point towards a sprint in Bruges later today.

This race was formerly known as Brugge-De Panne, and has been through several iterations previous to that. There's a new route to get familiar with and a new finish in Bruges.

The race no longer goes near the coast in De Panne, missing out the famous De Moeren section, which has decided many a race over the years due to its exposure to the wind.

Reigning champion Lorena Wiebes comes in as the big favourite once again for this race, but who might challenge her should it all come down to a sprint?

Irish rider Lara Gillespie (UAE Team ADQ) has taken a big step forward over the past 18 months and is getting closer to Wiebes in terms of speed. Lidl-Trek's former world champion Elisa Balsamo is another who will be aiming for victory. The Italian has won this race twice before. New Zealand champion Ally Wollaston is another with big ambitions. The AG Insurance-Soudal rider went close to Wiebes in the sprint from the chase group at Milan-San Remo last week.

New name, new route, new winners? – Analysing the contenders for the men's and women's Ronde Van Brugge

The riders are due to roll out for the neutral start in around 15 minutes. The race will officially get underway at 13:45 CET.

Originally, Wiebes had planned to sit out the race today. However, after reigning Luxembourg national champion Marie Schreiber pulled out of the race, SD Worx-ProTime opted to replace her with the pre-eminent sprinter of this generation.

Wiebes missed out on fighting for the victory in San Remo on Saturday and seems keen to add another WorldTour win to her collection today.

"She is in good shape and was very keen to add the Bruges Cycling Classic to her calendar once it became clear that Marie Schreiber wouldn’t be fit in time. So we will try to defend her victory,” Sports Director Christian Kos said ahead of the race.

Late roster move puts Ronde van Brugge defending champion Lorena Wiebes back in lineup for 'tough race' with forecast of rain and wind

So what do the riders have to tackle out on the route today? It's a pan-flat course, starting and finishing in Bruges, but that doesn't mean that the race is absent of obstacles.

As evidenced by the men's race yesterday, there are plenty of opportunities to split the race should the wind blow hard enough due to the many exposed sections of road.

There is also a cobbled sector that the riders will take on twice. The Brieversweg is 1.3km long and will be taken on with 90km to go and then 30km to go.

Looking a bit deeper into the start-list today, let's see who else could contend for the win.

Fenix-Premier Tech's Charlotte Kool appears to be back on form this year after a difficult 2025. The two-time Tour de France Femmes stage-winner took the win at the FENIX-EKOÏ Omloop van het Hageland at the beginning of this month and scored a top-10 at Milan-San Remo.

Chiara Consonni is always there in the big sprints, but often doesn't have the top-end speed to beat the quickest riders.

Georgia Baker is in a similar boat to Consonni and Liv-AlUla-Jayco will be hoping she can contend for a top-5 today.

Neutral start

The riders are setting off. They will ride through Bruges behind the commissaire's car before being unleashed at around 13:45 CET.

The Liv-AlUla-Jayco riders are wrapped up in the cold and windy conditions.

Before taking on two local laps around Bruges, which include the Brieversweg cobbled section, the riders will head out on a 45km loop south taking in the towns of Torhout, Wingene and Beernem.

Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto are also ready to face the bracing conditions.

It's five minutes until the flag will drop for the official start of the race.

Reports of the speed of the wind vary at the moment, but most seem to agree that it is blowing above 20km/h and gusting. That could be enough to blow the race to bits later on. We could be in for some carnage out on the roads of West Flanders over the next few hours.

Lidl-Trek's Elisa Balsamo in high spirits at the start in the centre of Bruges. Can she challenge Wiebes today?

144km to go

The race is underway.

Here is the peloton rolling out of Bruges just a few minutes ago

Human Powered Health have a few potential cards for later on.

Maggie Coles-Lyster looks back towards her best after missing much of last season through illness. She won the Tour Down Under-One Day Race in January before several top-10s at the UAE Tour.

You'd bet on Kathrin Schweinberger making the splits should they occur later on and she was 10th here in 2025. Silvia Zanardi was in the top-20 at this race last year.

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With 5km done, the riders are heading south towards the town of Torhout.

After that, the peloton will head east, which could mean an early chance for echelons.

An early mechanical issue for Femke Markus of SD Worx-ProTime. She will be a key helper for Wiebes later on.

It's 7 degrees celsius out there today, with the wind making it feel much cooler. Riders are dressed in full winter kit.

The riders are through the town of Torhout and are now heading east.

The peloton is all together at the moment

130km to go

The riders have less than 300 metres of elevation on the course today. There won't be many flatter races than that all season.

EF Education-Oatly has brought a young team to Bruges today.

Canadian Alexandra Volstad, pictured here, could be their best bet for a result later on. She was going well at the UAE Tour last month.

One of the more eye-catching stories from the men's race yesterday was the crash on the cobbled sector caused by a sitting climate protestor. Several riders came down in the incident.

Climate protester sits down on cobbles in front of oncoming peloton at Ronde Van Brugge

120km to go

The bunch is still together and ticking along at over 45km per hour.

It's not currently raining on the course, but you can see the spray coming from Margaux Vigie's back wheel here. Tough conditions out there today.

The riders have completed 29 kilometres and are heading into the town of Wingene. After that, they will turn north into a headwind and towards the local circuit.

UAE Team ADQ's Sofie van Rooijen returning to the peloton after a puncture.

The Visma-Lease a Bike squad rolling to the sign-on area earlier.

The Dutch team has last year's sixth-place rider in its line-up today, 22-year-old Nienke Veenhoven. Can she improve on that performance today?

110km to go

There's still no breakaway

Lorena Wiebes has removed her leg warmers. That either means that conditions are getting better, or she's getting ready for things to kick-off in the wind.

The riders are just entering the town of Beernem. There are 6km left until they enter the circuit and a further 8 until the first passing of the Brieversweg cobbled sector.

The cobbled sector is 1.3km long, completely flat and dead-straight. The stones themselves are small and uniform, so this isn't the toughest sector of cobbles you're likely to see over the next couple of weeks.

Wiebes has said before the start that she is looking to see the race split up today in the crosswinds.

"Hopefully the crosswinds break things up and a small group rides to the finish for a sprint," she said to the media before the start.

We're an hour in and the riders have covered 42 kilometres.

100km to go

The riders are entering the local circuit. It's nearly time for some cobbles.

AG Insurance-Soudal's Shari Bossuyt is an outsider for the win today.

The 25-year-old is taking on her first full season since returning from an anti-doping suspension and is yet to finish outside of the top-7 in any of her races so far in 2026.

There is still no breakaway. The riders are 5km away from the first passing of the Brieversweg cobble section.

Susanne Andersen and Linda Zanetti will be Uno-X Mobility's best hopes for a result today.

The riders have been riding into a headwind for the last 20km or so, which could be why we've not seen any moves go up the road yet. The course twists and turns now, so we coould see some action - especially with the cobbles.

Brieversweg (1.3km)

The riders have turned westward and are onto the cobbled section for the first time.

It's flat and straight, but it could cause a few issues.

90km to go

The Brieversweg is over. They will return to it with 30km of the race left.

Key SD Worx-ProTime domestique Femke Gerritse is returning to the peloton after a bike swap.

The riders have completed 60km now, but there is still no breakaway.

Lidl-Trek are mobbed towards the front of the peloton at the moment.

The wind is blowing and the likes of Lidl-Trek, Visma-Lease a Bike and Fenix-Premier Tech are lifting the pace at the front.

A few riders are being tailed off the back on this exposed section.

Echelons

The race is in two groups. Around 20 riders are trying to chase back onto a large front group.

80km to go

The riders have just turned north, back into the headwind now, so the chasing group have a chance to get back on.

The course will turn left again in around 10km for a longer stretch, giving a better opportunity to really split things up.

Bike change for Linda Zanetti. Bad timing for the Uno-X Mobility sprinter.

The pace has dropped again now with the riders now facing a headwind. The chasing group is likely to come back.

The chasing group, including Zanetti, has latched back onto the leading group.

There were several riders from Picnic-PostNL in that second group. They will need to be much more attentive with the direction changes again.

The sun is out in West Flanders, but it is still cold. Almost every rider has arm-warmers and gilets on.

Crash

There has been a fall in the middle of the peloton. Mylene de Zoete is down and her race looks to be over.

Robyn Clay was the other rider down, but she is back in the peloton.

Big move by FDJ United-SUEZ on the left side of the peloton. The riders are about to turn left into a crosswind.

There was no action on the first cobbled sector of the day.

The riders have passed through the popular tourist destination of Damme. That's where the first echelons were formed.

The pace is up again in the peloton, but the wind direction isn't quite right to split things at the moment.

70km to go

The peloton takes another left turn. Now it's a strong cross-tailwind for the next 10km.

A back wheel puncture for VolkerWessel's young sprinter Scarlett Souren

It's very exposed at the moment, but no team is taking it on just yet.

The peloton is heading through the town of Dudzele now.

Several riders are using this calmer moment as an opportunity to ditch jackets and arm-warmers.

FDJ United-SUEZ, Liv-AlUla-Jayco and Lidl-Trek are riding with numbers at the head of the bunch.

A bit of a pause in the hostilities here as more riders take off the winter gear or go back to the cars for bottles.

Will the race split over the next 62km, or are we heading for a full bunch sprint in Bruges?

Lorena Wiebes is off the back and making her way back to the peloton. She has a team-mate with her and is moving through the cars.

60km to go

The Dutch champion is still quite a way off the back at the moment, but there's no panic as the pace is still slow in the bunch.

The riders have passed through the finish line for the first time. Next time, it will be for the win.

There was an intermediate sprint across the line in Bruges, taken by a rider from Lotto-Intermarché Ladies

The riders are in the centre of Bruges now. There won't be any crosswind action until they are in a more exposed area.

Wiebes is back in the peloton now, as are Chiara Consonni and Zoe Backstedt, who were also off the back.

UAE Team ADQ were central to the attempts to split the race earlier. They are likely to try again soon.

The peloton is heading south towards Oostkamp. After that, they will turn left and head east. With the wind coming in strongly from the riders' left, will any team try to split things?

50km to go

The peloton is fanned across the road, with all the big teams present near the front.

AG Insurance-Soudal are at the front in number, keeping Bossuyt out of trouble.

Young Australian champion Mackenzie Coupland has been really impressive this season.

She's on the front now raising the pace.

The pace is up again, with UAE Team ADQ and Liv-AlUla-Jayco trying to cause some damage. The peloton is on an exposed section again.

Crash

There's been a fall near the back of the bunch. Coupland is down alongside riders from Picnic-PostNL and VolkerWessels. Eve Kuipers is also down for Fenix-Premier Tech.

Coupland has a mark on her helmet and is having a concussion check.

The heavens have opened over the peloton. This is a really heavy downpour.

It has been sunny all day, but suddenly the rain has started pelting the riders. Awful conditions now and a rider has fallen on a roundabout.

The peloton is really strung out now. UAE Team ADQ are using the conditions to their advantage and are pushing on.

Big splits in the bunch now. It doesn't look like it's the wind causing the separations, just the pace from UAE Team ADQ and the battering rain.

Wiebes is very well placed towards the front.

There are more splits. Riders are chasing hard to get back on, but a leading group of 40 have a small lead.

As quickly as the rain came, it now appears to be lifting. Several riders have latched back onto the front.

Ally Wollaston is well positioned at the front now, as is Chiara Consonni.

Mexican rider Romina Hinojosa is among a small group that has just re-joined the front of the race.

A shot of the peloton heading through Bruges.

There are 5km until the second and final passing of the Brieversweg cobblestone section.

Shortly after the cobbled section the riders will pass through Damme and take a left turn. That's where we saw the peloton split into echelons on the last lap.

SD Worx-ProTime haven't done a lot of work on the front yet today. Lidl-Trek are currently on the front on one side of the peloton, with a second train full of Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto riders on the other side.

The Brieversweg is imminent.

Anya Louw has dropped off the back of the peloton having done some work for Shari Bossuyt earlier today.

Big pickup by Lidl-Trek approaching the cobbles.

Brieversweg (1.3km)

Back onto the cobbles and it's Lauretta Hanson driving things on for Lidl-Trek. She has drifted off the front with four other riders including Alison Jackson.

Jackson attacks solo now and has a small gap.

It's Hanson on the front of the bunch now. Jackson has a handful of seconds.

30km to go

Jackson sits up, seeing that her move is a lost cause with all the big teams chasing.

The riders turned right shortly after the Brieversweg, back into a headwind. They will soon turn left into the section of road that split things last time.

Here's an idea of the conditions the riders faced earlier.

A bit of a squeeze in the bunch and two riders were forced to unclip and ride on the grass for a moment. It's a bit nervy out there.

25km to go

The riders are going into a block headwind now and things are all bunched together.

The riders are into Damme now and are on a short cobbled section.

Alison Jackson on the attack on the Brieversweg

Mechanical issue for Katharina Sadnik

The peloton is on the section where things split on the first lap now, and it's splitting again.

Not quite as much destruction this time around. Just a few riders have been tailed off the back.

Quinty Ton puts in a speculative move for Liv-AlUla-Jayco. The Australian team have been among the keenest to avoid a sprint today, but it's looking inevitable at the moment.

Attack by two riders. It's Jony van den Eijnden from Citymesh-Customm and a rider from EF Education-Oatly.

The peloton have not immediately reacted and the pair are building a small lead.

The EF Education-Oatly rider is Babette van de Wolf.

The leaders have stretched out their advantage above 10 seconds.

The peloton are quite relaxed about the leading pair at the moment. SD Worx-ProTime have come to the front to control things.

The young Dutch leading duo are working nicely together. Their lead is approaching 20 seconds with 17km to go.

Marta Lach is at the front for SD Worx-ProTime. On the other side, Fenix-Premier Tech are there in numbers for Charlotte Kool.

The gap is coming down as teams organise behind. The leaders have 11 seconds.

15km to go

The attackers are caught. We're heading for a big sprint in Bruges.

Some teams are fighting for the front, others are biding their time. Lidl-Trek and FDJ United-SUEZ are the latter at the moment and will look to make a big move on the approach to the finale.

It's a stalemate now. The wind isn't blowing hard enough or in the right direction. We're heading for a sprint.

It's not a simple finale. There is plenty of road furniture now as the peloton heads into Bruges. The road width varies over the final few kilometres and there are several bends inside the final few kilometres.

10km to go

The riders are on a wide section of road now. Teams are trying to use this as an opportunity to get to the front.

8km to go

There's not been much action today in terms of splits and attacks, but it's been a tough day out there nonetheless. It's been nervous all day with the unknown of the wind and the downpour earlier really battered the riders.

There certainly appears to be a fair amount of fatigue in the peloton. How will that impact the final sprint?

Visma-Lease a Bike are gathered on the left of the peloton. They are looking after young Dutch rider Nienke Veenhoven, who was sixth here last year.

Uno-X Mobility have been riding well all day and young Finnish rider Anniina Ahtosalo has been on the front for a long time. They have Linda Zanetti to contest the sprint.

5km to go

Marta Lach is driving things on for Wiebes, who is well positioned, as she has been for the entire day.

There's a lot of road furniture for the riders to navigate around now.

4km to go

Canyon-SRAM-zondacrypto come to the front now in support of Consonni.

3km to go

This is impressive from Visma-Lease a Bike. Other teams come to the front and then fade, but the Dutch team has remained at the head of things for a long time.

Big crash on the right side of the peloton, taking out Kool, Schweinberger and Couzens.

Lidl-Trek now appear at the front.

1km to go

Wiebes only has one team-mate left

Lidl-Trek make a big move on the left with Balsamo well positioned

Gillespie, Wiebes and Consonni are well positioned ahead of the final sprint

Carys Lloyd launches first for Movistar, but the others are coming behind her

Victory for Carys Lloyd

But Lloyd holds on. What a show of strength from the 19-year-old.

Without doubt, that is the biggest result of the youngster's career. An amazing sprint after a challenging day in West Flanders.

Lloyd was first to launch the sprint, and she held on ahead of the fastest riders in the world.

Balsamo was coming back at Lloyd, as was Consonni. Wiebes was boxed in and was nowhere near contending for the win.

Balsamo finished second, with Veenhoven in third place ahead of Consonni.

Wiebes was back in 9th place.

It was a pan-flat race without a breakaway. On the face of it, it would appear to be an easy race. However, this was nothing of the sort, with the pace hard for much of the day and the conditions extremely challenging.

Those conditions probably played into Lloyd's favour with fatigue building in the legs of the fastest sprinters.

Lloyd launched her sprint from about 200 metres to go and no-one could challenge her.

Here's Cyclingnews' race report after a thrilling sprint finish in Bruges.

Ronde van Brugge Women: Carys Lloyd takes stunning sprint victory

Full results from the 2026 Ronde van Brugge Women, powered by First Cycling.

Lloyd was understandably delighted afterwards. Here's what she said in the TV interview:

"With about 500 meters to go, I think all the sprinters were just left with no lead-outs and it was kind of just everyone for themselves. I saw 200 meters to go and I was just like, 'okay, I just have to go for it and see what happens'. And yeah, it worked."