“It was a good wake-up call" - Lotte Kopecky ultra-focused for another Tour of Flanders win after mid-week disappointment

Lotte Kopecky arrives at the 2026 Tour of Flanders with recent dominance in the race firmly established, but also with a sharper edge after what she openly described as a timely warning earlier in the week.

“It was a good wake-up call,” Kopecky said ahead of the race in conversation with Sporza, reflecting on her mid-week performance.

Despite winning three of the last four editions of the Ronde, the Team SD Worx - Protime leader has not been unanimously installed as the outright favourite this time around. It is a shift in perception that she is aware of, but not one that changes her own approach.

“I don’t really pay much attention to that,” she said. “In fact, I’d almost rather not be included. I don’t know what they base that on. I know where I stand, and that’s what matters most.”

Rather than viewing her performance at Dwars door Vlaanderen as a setback, Kopecky framed it as a useful correction at exactly the right moment in the calendar. “It was a good wake-up call that I shouldn’t be sitting too far back or switching off,” she explained. “That’s the positive I take into today.”

That message speaks to the margins that define the Tour of Flanders. Positioning, awareness and timing are often as decisive as raw strength, particularly on a course that offers little room for recovery once the race begins to fracture.

Kopecky’s recent record in the race underlines her ability to manage those demands better than anyone, but her comments suggest a clear intention to sharpen that focus even further.

Looking ahead to how the race might unfold, Kopecky pointed to external factors that could force the action earlier than usual. “It will depend on the wind, because it’s blowing quite strongly,” she said. “A lot of teams will want to make the race hard early, so we’ll have to see how that develops.”

That scenario would place even greater emphasis on constant attentiveness, something Kopecky has already identified as essential. “We’ll need to be attentive from the Eikenberg,” she added. “And the Koppenberg is always decisive in determining who makes it into the final.”

With the defining sections of the race offering little margin for error, Kopecky’s assessment is clear. Form alone will not be enough. Execution will decide everything.

And after her own “wake-up call”, she lines up fully aware of exactly what that requires.