European summer temperatures and La Vuelta Ciclista a España capture the attention of cycling enthusiasts in August. But, more than four and a half months after Kasper Asgreen's victory in the Ronde van Vlaanderen, the specialists of the Flandrian Classics are about to return to centre stage. Regular spring cobblestone contenders are fine-tuning their preparation before a pivotal period in an atypical 2021.
Mid-season is gone, but big events are yet to come, in particular the 2021 UCI Road World Championships (26 September) and Paris-Roubaix (3 October). Before that, Classics experts head to the Benelux Tour (formerly BinckBank Tour), from 30 August to 5 September. The stakes are twofold: to settle who will succeed Mathieu Van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) and to launch the second paved campaign of the season.
He has not reappeared in competition since his heavy crash in the mountain bike event of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, but Mathieu Van der Poel is stepping forward as the defending champion and he's naturally hailed as the number one favourite in the absence of his great Belgian rival Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) and the mountain bike Olympic Champion Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers), of Great Britain.
Last year, Van der Poel pulled off a double coup (stage and overall victories) on the final day, traditionally designed around the Muur van Geraardsbergen. Although it is no longer decisive in the Ronde van Vlaanderen, the Muur Kapelmuur remains the final attraction of the only UCI WorldTour stage race for Flandriens.
Last year, this success was the trigger for Van der Poel and he went on to win the Ronde, his first Monument, two weeks later. It remains to be seen what condition the 2021 Strade Bianche winner will be in, especially since he had to leave his altitude training camp in Livigno in mid-August due to back pain and has decided not to compete in this weekend’s UCI Mountain Bike World Championships. The Dutchman will also have to deal with extremely strong opposition heading to the Benelux Tour.
Among the participants, three other former winners of the event will be at the start: Slovenian Matej Mohorič (2018), the Netherlands’ Tom Dumoulin (2017) and Belgian Tim Wellens (2014 and 2015). The first two come out of successful summers: two stage wins in the Tour de France for Mohorič, and a silver medal in the individual time trial of the Olympic Games for the Dutch rider. As for the Belgian, 6th in the recent Tour de Pologne, he has the right profile to shine in this type of event.
The same goes for the runner-up behind Mathieu Van der Poel last year: Søren Kragh Andersen. The Dane from Team DSM is very strong on the cobbled climbs as well as in the time trial, as evidenced by his recent second place on the PostNord Danmark Rundt time trial, behind Remco Evenepoel, who is also present on the Benelux Tour.
Deceuninck – Quick-Step came with many strong cards to play for the win, with two other favourites alongside Evenepoel: Yves Lampaert (4th last year) and Kasper Asgreen, dominant at the start of the season.
The Trek-Segafredo duo of 2019 UCI World Champion Mads Pedersen and 2021 Milan-San Remo winner Jasper Stuyven are also expected to be contenders in the race. The same goes for the Belgian pair of AG2R-Citröen Team: Oliver Naesen and Greg Van Avermaet who often came close to victory in the spring, with a podium at the Ronde for the former Olympic Champion.
Finally, there are many other outsiders also on the starting list, including Tiesj Benoot (Team DSM), Alexey Lutsenko (Astana-Premier Tech), Alexander Kristoff (UAE Team Emirates), Christophe Laporte (Cofidis), Gianni Moscon and Geraint Thomas (Ineos Grenadiers), Dylan Teuns and Sonny Colbrelli (Bahrain Victorious), Philippe Gilbert (Lotto Soudal), and Ivan Garcia Cortina (Movistar Team).
The start of the first stage in Surhuisterveen will be 27 days before the Men Elite road race at the 2021 UCI Road World Championships in Leuven in Flanders (Belgium).
More than a preparation race, the Benelux Tour feels like a dress rehearsal. The seven days of competition will allow the riders to test themselves, and to gain a psychological advantage over their rivals on courses that are sometimes very similar to what will be presented to them in Leuven. They will also aim to refine their condition to reach a fitness peak at the end of September. The pace of the competition, especially at UCI WorldTour level, remains the most effective way to make training sessions fruitful.
The imminence of the UCI Road World Championships also raises another major issue: that of the selection to compete in the race for the rainbow jersey. Some nations like Belgium are full of talent. Sven Vanthourenhout will have to select only seven other riders to accompany the essential Van Aert, among many contenders, including Stuyven, Van Avermaet, Naesen, Wellens, Vanmarcke, Gilbert, Lampaert or Teuns... and the Benelux Tour is a unique opportunity for all these candidates to score big points in the eyes of their coach.
Those overlooked or unsuccessful at the UCI Road World Championships may, however, find another shot at glory a week later, on the roads of the second cobbled Monument of the season: Paris-Roubaix.