Spring Classics 2026

The Spring Classics mark the thaw of winter and the end to training rides, coffee stops and team presentations as riders start to dig into the meat of the 2026 season.

The opening weekend is not the first race day of the year but the start of the traditional Belgian Classics, with Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne for men and Omloop van het Hageland for women.

Strade Bianche is the next major race after the intervening Ename Samyn Classic (formerly Le Samyn) and Le Samyn des Dames and typically provides warmer, more pleasant racing conditions in which to tackle the unique challenge of racing over the 'white roads' of Tuscany.

Nokere Koerse is the next Spring Classic for men and women - a race that is based around the cobbled Nokereberg climb.

Milano-Torino was added to the spring calendar in 2022. It used to take place in the autumn but now leads up to Milan-San Remo and uses a flatter course.

An alternative to the Italian semi-classic is the GP de Denain which serves as a small taste of the cobbles of Paris-Roubaix.

The first Monument of the season, Milan-San Remo is a venerable race that dates back to 1907. Also known as La Classicissima (the big classic) and La Primavera (the spring), it is the most important day in Italian cycling.

The women got their version of the event in 2025 with the introduction of the Women's Milan-San Remo, won by Lorena Wiebes.

That meant the Trofeo Alfredo Binda, which dates back to 1974, shifted one weekend earlier and is now the Sunday before Milan-San Remo.

Racing then heads back to Belgium for the Classic Brugge-De Panne. A Women's Classic Brugge-De Panne was added in 2018. Both start in Bruges before heading into the windswept swamp plains of De Moeren, before heading for the finish in De Panne. If the race hasn't been broken apart in the wind, it's a likely bunch sprint.

Another warm-up race, the E3 Saxo Classic, a mini-Tour of Flanders, is exclusively for the men. It leads into Gent-Wevelgem - known in 2026 as 'In Flanders Fields-From Middelkerke to Wevelgem', another historic Flandrien Classic that uses features of Brugge-De Panne and the climbs of West Flanders, along the French border including the iconic and decisive Kemmelberg.

The men's race was first held in 1934 while the Women's Gent-Wevelgem was created in 2012 and now acts as the fifth event on the WorldTour calendar.

Dwars door Vlaanderen occupies the Wednesday before the Tour of Flanders. A Women's Dwars door Vlaanderen was established in 2012.

The week culminates with the Tour of Flanders, one of the most iconic days on the cycling calendar.

Since 2004, there has also been a women's Tour of Flanders. The courses have changed over the years but the current iteration uses circuits that include the Oude Kwaremont and super-steep Paterberg, both serving as the grand finale ahead of the 13km run-in.

The sprinters get to shine in the Scheldeprijs, known as the 'world championship for sprinters'. The race takes its name from the Schelde river up near Antwerp in the east of Flanders, and there can be a threat of wind before the races heads to Schoten for laps of a finishing circuit.

The men's race was created in 1907, while a women's Scheldeprijs was introduced in 2021.

The Hell of the North, Paris-Roubaix is the only French Classic but it is arguably the most important of the entire spring, with riders fighting across 50+ kilometres of rough cobbled roads to hoist the cobblestone trophy. The men's race was first held back in 1896, while a women's Paris-Roubaix was only introduced in 2021.

Between the cobbled and Ardennes Classics comes De Babantse Pijl, which takes place between Flanders and Wallonia. First held in 1961 and the women's Brabantse Pijl since 2016, both races feature a variety of climbs, both cobbled and paved.

The Amstel Gold Race, first held in 1966, is one of the three Ardennes Classics, even if it takes place in Limburg, the Netherlands. Named after a beer, it's a snaking and undulating ride through the hills of Limburg, with climbs like the Cauberg make for a chaotic finale.

A women's Amstel Gold Race was added in 2001 and both take place on the same day and start and finish near Valkenburg.

La Flèche Wallonne comes midweek with the annual showdown on the Mur de Huy. The men's race was first held in 1936 and the women's La Flèche Wallonne in 1998, and the winner invariably comes from a large group splintering into pieces on the steep climb in Huy.

The oldest of the Classics, Liège-Bastogne-Liège was first held in 1892. The women's Liège-Bastogne-Liège was set up by Tour de France organisers ASO in 2017.

The races start and finishes in Liège, heading south to Bastogne before returning back. A previous finale in Ans became too predictable so organisers moved the finish back to Liège.

2025 Spring Classics roundup

2024 Spring Classics roundup

2023 Spring Classics roundup

2022 Spring Classics roundup