Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto will line up at the Tour of Flanders without their usual talisman, but are optimistic about the chances of the other talented riders in their squad for De Ronde.
While most analysis of the contenders for Sunday on the likes of defending champion Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime), last year's Paris-Roubaix Femmes victor Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (Visma-Lease a Bike), and Omloop Het Nieuwsblad winner Demi Vollering (FDJ United-SUEZ), there has been relatively little focus on Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto – a team who would ordinarily feature on such lists.
The omission is perhaps unsurprising given the German team arrive in Oudenaarde on Sunday without their leader and 2024's second-place finisher, Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney, who opts to miss this year's Tour of Flanders.
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The Polish champion has not returned to racing since her involvement in the horror crash on the descent from the Cipressa at last month's Milan-San Remo, but despite not sustaining serious injuries in the crash, Flanders was not in her plan for 2026. She has more of a focus on the Ardennes this spring.
Instead, the squad will see both Chloé Dygert and Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig make their cobbled Classics debuts for this year, along with Zoe Bäckstedt who has already impressed recently, finishing fourth in Wednesday's Dwars door Vlaanderen.
For Dygert, Flanders represents a significant step in her 2026 season, following a crash in January at the Tour Down Under that saw her sidelined with a knee injury.
"“My recovery has been very hard, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I feel like I train better under pressure, and I’m as fit as I can be with the few weeks of preparation that I’ve had," she said.
"It’s hard to say without having raced, but I hope I’m healthy and fit enough to be competitive. Having done the race before, I have the knowledge of how it unfolds, so now it’s just a matter of being able to race along with it. I wouldn’t say this break is an advantage for Flanders, but for the rest of the season, with Worlds as the main goal, it may have been the best possible thing to happen to me."
Alongside Dygert, Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig will continue her spring campaign following modest results in the Italian Classics. The Dane has not reached her former peak since she crashed out of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad in 2024, but her vast experience at the race will prove invaluable for the team. Uttrup Ludwig has raced 11 of the last 12 editions of the race, with a third place in 2019 her best result.
Perhaps the team's best chance to spring a surprise on the favourites will come through 21-year-old Brit Zoe Bäckstedt, who has been active throughout the cobbled Classics, steadily building her form. This culminated in a confident performance in Wednesday's Dwars door Vlaanderen where she recorded an impressive fourth-place finish, winning the sprint from the bunch that arrived just seven seconds behind the breakaway duo of eventual winner Marlen Reusser (Movistar) and Vollering, and late flying third-place finisher Lieke Nooijen (Visma-Lease a Bike).
Bäckstedt will make her second appearance at the race, having missed the 2024 edition.
"It’s been some time since I last raced Ronde van Vlaanderen, so I’m excited to get back out there," she said. "I don’t have specific expectations, but I’d like to be in a good group at the end of the race. We’re on the start line with a strong team and, of course, we’re aiming for a good result."
Dygert, Uttrup Ludwig and Bäckstedt will be joined by Nastya Kolesava, Agnieszka Skalniak-Sójka and former Unbound winner Rosa Klöser.
Though they may be viewed as underdogs this time around, Canyon-SRAM zondacrypto will hope to be in amongst it when the final selection is made on Sunday, and if they can find themselves in the right place at the right time, perhaps even upset the odds and propel themselves on the podium.
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