Algemeen Lotto Soudal with 21 riders at the start of Belgian road championships
On Sunday 26 June, the battle for the Belgian tricolour jersey will take place in Middelkerke. Lotto Soudal will be at the start of the Belgian road championships with 21 riders. Fifteen WorldTeam riders will compete in the men’s elite race, ridden on a just over 200 kilometres long pan-flat course. Six Lotto Soudal Ladies will be at the start of the 120-kilometre battle for the national jersey in the elite and U23 category. Sports directors Nikolas Maes (WorldTeam) and Dirk Onghena (Lotto Soudal Ladies) preview the battle of the Belgians.
“The Belgian championship is a special moment for every rider but most of all it’s a really difficult race”, says Nikolas Maes, who rode numerous Belgian championships throughout his career. “It is a race like no other seen the completely different composition of the teams. With fifteen riders, we have a strong team at the start but without an absolute numerical superiority. Several guys in the team return from a period of rest, some of them are coming back from injuries but of course we do have several guys in top shape.”
Thomas De Gendt and Viktor Verschaeve won’t be at the start of the Belgian championships. De Gendt suffers too much from his ankle injury, which also hampered his performance at the national time trial championship. Verschaeve is working hard on his comeback after a surgery.
Nikolas Maes: “The course in and around Middelkerke is pan-flat but that doesn’t mean at all there will be a bunch sprint. In the first 100 to 120 kilometres, the riders race almost constantly through open plains, where the wind can play its part. The race can already be made hard there and explode towards the local laps. It will be a case of racing attentively and protecting our indicated riders and get them in a good position. It is clear that we don’t have the top favourite, that’s something for the Alpecin-Fenix duo of Jasper Philipsen and Tim Merlier.”
Line-up Lotto Soudal Belgian road championships men elite: Cedric Beullens, Jasper De Buyst, Steff Cras, Victor Campenaerts, Arnaud De Lie, Frederik Frison, Philippe Gilbert, Sébastien Grignard, Sylvain Moniquet, Maxim Van Gils, Brent Van Moer, Harm Vanhoucke, Florian Vermeersch, Xandres Vervloesem and Tim Wellens.
The Lotto Soudal Ladies will be at the start with six after Esmée Gielkens fell ill.
“The nationals are a really hard race to control and also the wind will be an important factor’, says Dirk Onghena, sports director at the Lotto Soudal Ladies. “Lotte Kopecky is the big favourite but that is also why everyone will be looking at her. A sprint is possible but not at all a certainty. Our Lotto Soudal Ladies need to show themselves in a breakaway and with Mieke Docx and Katrijn De Clercq, we have two fast girls. Apart from that, the battle for the Belgian U23 title will be a race within the race. Brandt, De Clercq, Van de Paar and Vervloet are eligible for this.”
Line-up Lotto Soudal Ladies women elite/U23: Eefje Brandt, Katrijn De Clercq, Mieke Docx, , Ines Van de Paar, Elise Vander Sande and Sterre Vervloet.
