Reigning Tour of Flanders champion Lotte Kopecky has announced her spring schedule, with nine major Classics filling her schedule along with a track meet at the UCI World Cup in Hong Kong and the Vuelta España Femenina.
Kopecky will get her season underway this Saturday at the Belgian season opener, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, where she's set to join Lorena Wiebes and Anna van der Breggen in the SD Worx-Protime selection.
A trip to Italy for Strade Bianche Donne (March 7) and the Trofeo Alfredo Binda (March 15) follows, with Nokere Koerse (March 18) her final race before tackling the second edition of Milan-San Remo Donne (March 21).
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April kicks off with Dwars door Vlaanderen (April 1), her sole build-up race before the Tour of Flanders (April 5), where she'll aim for her fourth title, and Paris-Roubaix Femmes (April 12).
Kopecky will then switch disciplines to the track, where she took European titles in the elimination, points race, and madison earlier this month. She'll compete at the UCI World Cup in Hong Kong from April 17-19.
After that comes one last spring Classics appearance at Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes (April 26).
"Fully packed spring campaign, just the way we like it," Kopecky wrote in an Instagram post announcing her schedule.
"I'm really looking forward to starting the season. During training camp, I was counting down the days until I could race again," she said on her team's website.
"The day after tomorrow, it will finally be time. Maybe it's a bit old school, but for me, the racing season only really starts with the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. Without wanting to detract from the Tour Down Under, UAE Tour or Valencia, for the average racing fan, this is the real start. At the Omloop, it's really all about the big prizes."
Following the spring Classics, Kopecky will turn her attention to the stage racing season, with a first appearance at the Vuelta España Femenina since 2022 on the menu. Beyond May, her schedule is unannounced, though the UCI Road World Championships are a late-season goal.
"I don't really have one particular race that I absolutely want to win this season. I prefer to go into every race with an open mind," she said of her spring schedule.
"I want to see how the race unfolds, where opportunities arise and where I can force things. The advantage of our team is that we can often play different cards. If you don't necessarily start with the best legs, you don't have to worry because your teammates can finish it off for you. That's what sometimes gets you through a race like that.
"I hope to get 2026 off to a good start with a strong performance in the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad. It's a beautiful course with a very nice finish. In 2023, I was able to win in a nice way and I've already finished second, so the finale suits me. That gives me extra motivation."
Kopecky heads into 2026 in a better place than she was in 2025, when she started the year on the back foot before falling victim to a series of injuries throughout the season, which held her back from her main summer goal of challenging for the Tour de France Femmes.
"When I was sitting here last year [January], I was not even riding the bike. Physically, I was just not good enough. I tried to limit the losses, but I lost all my winter training. For me, it had followed me all season. That was the main problem," Kopecky said earlier this year.
In the same interview, she indicated that she wouldn't lead SD Worx-Protime at the Tour this year, noting that she preferred the "wildcard position" at the Grand Tours.
"I have a lot of possibilities in the Spring Classics. I think it was nice to improvise for one year, but now I want to get back to what I'm good at and where I know I can be really confident," she said.
"These are races that I really love to do, the races I like the most, and the most important part of the season will be the first three months. Those are the races that I am looking forward to. Then there are the World Championships in Canada.
"I'm hungry to race again and hungry to win again. 2025 is what it is; it wasn't great, but it wasn't extremely bad either. I'm looking forward to 2026."
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