La Flèche Wallonne 2026

La Flèche Wallonne information

Taking place on April 22, 2026, La Flèche Wallonne is sandwiched in the middle of the week between younger sibling Amstel Gold Race and La Doyenne - the oldest - Liège-Bastogne-Liège, which rounds out the Ardennes Classics triple crown.

Before the Amstel Gold Race was born in 1966, La Flèche Wallonne, which began in 1936, bounced around the calendar searching for its identity, finally linking up with Liège-Bastogne-Liège first on the same weekend in 1951, then as its post-script until it settled down in 1985 in its current Wednesday spot.

First raced on a course from Tournai to Liège, La Flèche Wallonne went through a watershed moment in 1985, when it moved its finish line to the summit of the Mur de Huy.

This year’s 90th edition will be the 42nd time that the race culminates on an ascent that immediately earned a spot among the toughest climbs in pro cycling.

In recent years, new climbs have been added to the final kilometres, with the Côte d'Ereffe adding another level of difficulty, but still, the Mur de Huy is almost always the deciding climb from a large group.

Alejandro Valverde holds the record of victories with five, and won four in a row between 2014 and 2017. The Spaniard won both Flèche Wallonne and Liège-Bastogne-Liège three times (2006, 2015, 2017) but has never won all three Ardennes Classics.

In 2023, Tadej Pogačar made it two out of three in the Ardennes Classics, crushing the competition on the Mur de Huy to win La Flèche Wallonne after claiming the Amstel Gold Race.

in 2024, Stevie Williams (Israel-PremierTech) scored one of the biggest wins of his career in La Flèche Wallonne, surging up Mur de Huy at the end of a cold, wet and brutal day. Kévin Vauquelin (Arkéa-Samsic) was second and Maxim Van Gils (Lotto-Dstny) third.

In 2025 Tadej Pogačar dominated once again, despite the terrible weather.

Pogačar launched a power attack on the steepest section of the climb, with the other favourites left to battle out the podium spots. Kévin Vauquelin (Arkea-B&B Hotels) finishing second and Tom Pidcock (Q36.5) was third. Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep) was a cold and disappointed ninth.

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