Pre-race favourite Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) stormed to an unstoppable victory in the men's Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, attacking on the Muur van Geraardsbergen to solo 16km to the finish.
Riding Omloop for the first time in his career, the former world champion executed a flawless race during a crash-filled day, opening his 2026 account with a win on his first race day of the season – striking an ominous blow to the rest of the bunch at the start of the Spring Classics.
The Dutchman initially went clear on the Molenberg, narrowly avoiding a crashed rider to follow an attack by Florian Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates-XRG).
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Van der Poel went on to launch his own powerful attack on the Muur van Geraardsbergen to go solo with 16km to go, and from there he cruised to the finish line unchallenged, setting out his stall for the races that lay ahead in style.
Tim van Dijke (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) won the sprint for second place with Vermeersch completing the podium in third.
Van der Poel launched his winning move on the Muur (Image credit: Getty Images)
How it unfolded
The stage was set for the first cobbled Spring Classic of 2026, and with wet conditions, brisk winds and a slightly altered race route to contend with, 175 riders set out from Gent heading onto the 207km race route.
After around 45 minutes of racing, a five-man breakaway was formed, featuring Jelte Krijnsen (Jayco AlUla), Vincent Van Hemelen (Flanders-Baloise), Alexys Brunel (TotalEnergies), Clément Alleno (Burgos-Burpellet BH) and Alexis Renard (Cofidis). They built a lead of 3:50 over the chasing peloton in the early stages of the race, with a stacked Alpecin-Premier Tech team in support of Van der Poel leading the chase in the peloton.
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The day's early breakaway (Image credit: Getty Images)
As the race moved closer to the final 75 kilometres the tension rose, and Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe and EF Education-EasyPost added their weight to the pursuit of the break, and approaching the Haaghoek where the rapid succession of cobbled sectors and climbs began Soudal-QuickStep, Tudor Pro Cycling and NSN Pro Cycling were also prominent in a tense bunch, with the gap to the break static at 2:30.
The afternoon was littered with crashes, including a double blow for UAE Team Emirates as Rune Herregodts crashed over the top of his teammate Rui Oliveira, and another larger coming together shortly after involving Tudor Pro Cycling’s Stefan Küng. One of the pre-race favourites Paul Magnier (Soudal-QuickStep) suffered a significant setback following a mechanical at 60 kilometres to go mark.
Heading onto the Wolvenberg, the first rider to strike out in pursuit of the leaders was Kasper Asgreen (EF Education-EasyPost), with Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) one of the most significant names to be dropped from the main bunch.
With 50 kilometres to go UAE Team Emirates took over the pace-setting, and the peloton shattered on the approach to the Molenberg with UAE and Lidl-Trek setting an infernal pace. A brutal crash for Rick Pluimers (Tudor Pro Cycling) on the entrance to the climb thinned out the selection even more, allowing UAE’s Florian Vermeersch to go clear with Van der Poel narrowly avoiding Pluimers in pursuit.
Vermeersch lit things up on the Molenberg (Image credit: Getty Images)
Tim van Dijke grappled his way across to join the duo and with 42 kilometres to go, they closed down the breakaway quintet, with a small peloton regrouping 20 seconds behind, led by Visma-Lease a Bike.
By the time the leading group approached the Leberg they had amassed a lead of around a minute and this held steady, with three of the original break hanging on, with just Brunel and Alleno slipping back. As the kilometres ticked away, the chasing group were unable to make a meaningful impression on the gap, while at the front Van der Poel and Vermeersch were content to exchange turns driving the lead group, and a further crash involving another group of riders took yet more weight out of the chase.
Van Dijke and Vermeersch were left behind on the Muur (Image credit: Getty Images)
Heading onto the Muur van Geraardsbergen, the lead group split and then Van der Poel powered clear, firing away from the rest with a seated acceleration that saw him take 20 seconds out of his closest rivals by the top of the climb, and ensuring that all he would have to do to win the race with just 15 kilometres remaining was to stay upright.
He maintained his composure, taking on the Bosberg solo and arriving in Ninove with a cushion of 22 seconds over the pair of pursuers. Van Dijke launched his sprint and Vermeersch surrendered, finishing third as the remains of the chase rolled in half a minute behind them, led by Christophe Laporte (Visma-Lease a Bike).
The final podium (Image credit: Getty Images)
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Katy Madgwick is a freelance writer and broadcaster, covering multiple disciplines across both men's and women's pro cycling. Head of Creators at Domestique Cycling, Katy has written for a broad range of publications, and is a regular contributor to Cyclist Magazine, Cyclingnews, TNT Sports and The Roadbook Cycling Almanack.
On the broadcast side, she is a co-host of the On Yer Bike podcast, occasional contributor to BBC Radio, and features on CADE Media's Pro Show podcast for the first time in 2025.
She is a lover of all things French and a cyclo-cross obsessive, and probably ought to get on her actual bike more often.
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