Stopped just before the finish: Van Aert duped in Flanders test

Belgian cycling star Wout van Aert suffered a bitter defeat in the dress rehearsal for the Tour of Flanders.

April 01, 2026

From: dpa/det

The 31-year-old, who will start in the classic race this weekend, missed his chance for revenge in a thrilling showdown after a painful defeat at the Belgian semi-classic Across Flanders last year.

It wasn't meant to be again: Van Aert was dramatically caught after a solo attack just meters from the finish and, as in the previous year, had to settle for second place. Two-time time trial world champion Filippo Ganna of Italy narrowly edged out van Aert to take the stage win, preventing the Belgian, who had finished third at Milan-San Remo, from achieving his first victory of the season. In the 80th edition of the race, Norway's Søren Wærenskjold finished third.

Big race on Sunday

At the 110th edition of the Tour of Flanders on Sunday, last year's winner Tadej Pogacar and three-time Tour of Flanders champion Mathieu van der Poel will compete. Belgian star Remco Evenepoel – teammate of rising German star Florian Lipowitz – also announced his first-ever participation in the Ronde at short notice via Instagram.

Keywords cycling racing bike