For the second straight year Lotte Kopecky has been crown the winner of the Tour of Flanders WE. Unlike last year where she outsprinted Annemiek van Vleuten for victory, this time Kopecky was able to savour the moment as she soloed to a dominant win.
Always one of the best days viewing on the cycling calendar, the Women's Tour of Flanders was viewed by many in the peloton as a perfect opportunity to impress. With everyone having such a desire to do well, no team wanted to miss out on an early break, as such it wasn't until around 65km's gone that the elastic finally snapped and Ally Wollaston (AG Insurance - Soudal Quick-Step) formed a solo leading group. Joined shortly after by Elise Chabbey (Canyon//SRAM Racing) and Elinor Barker (Uno-X Pro Cycling Team).
With 48km to go, drama ensued for women's road race world champion and one of the pre-race favourites Annemiek van Vleuten as she went down in a seemingly innocuous crash in the middle of the peloton. As the race ahead went over a damp Koppenberg, numerous riders were forced to unclip and rechain as the peloton almost came to a complete standstill.
It was following the Koppenberg that SD Worx began to really take control of the race. A four-woman group broke ahead of the main bunch, three of them from Team SD Worx as Lotte Kopecky, Lorena Wiebes and Marlen Reusser were joined by Silvia Persico (UAE Team ADQ). With the chasers scrambling to get back in contention with last year's Tour of Flanders winner, both Wiebes and Reusser were dropped from the lead group leaving just the duo of Kopecky and Persico working in tandem.
As Elisa Longo Borghini (Trek - Segafredo) powered the chasing group, keeping them in touch at around 20 seconds behind, Lotte Kopecky attacked again as the race reached the Oude Kwaremont, cracking Persico and riding clear on her own.
Shirin van Anrooij bridged the gap to Persico as the riders tackled the final cobbled sector of the day but Kopecky, whose lead was by now pushing a minute seemed to have an unassailable lead. It seemed as if the chase group had realised as much as well with the intent of the riders seemingly switching from catching Kopecky to the battle for the podium.
Kopecky allowed herself a smile to the camera as she eased the last km whilst in the background a fierce battle for the podium played out with Demi Vollering giving Team SD Worx a one-two finish ahead of Elisa Longo Borghini in third.
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Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
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