Amstel Gold Race 2011

Amstel Gold Race

The Amstel Gold Race marks the start of the Ardennes Classics trilogy with the twisting country lanes of the southern Limburg region of the Netherlands, replacing the cobbled climbs of Flanders and the sectors of pave of Paris-Roubaix.

The Ardennes week attracts a different set of riders, with the climbers replacing the cobbled classics specialist. Only a rare few, including last year's Amstel Gold Race winner Philippe Gilbert, have the ability to win on both types of terrain, where the ability to absorb the constant accumulation of lactic acid from the climbs is more decisive than power and speed across the pave.The Amstel Gold Race is the youngest of the spring classics having been created in 1966, and a move from the end of April to the first weekend of the Ardennes has made for a better race.