Results Ronde van Brugge WE 2026 | Carys Lloyd stuns Lorena Wiebes to win after chaotic sprint finish
Cycling
Carys Lloyd stunned the sprint favourites to win the Ronde van Brugge Women 2026, launching a long-range sprint and holding off Lorena Wiebes in a chaotic finale in Bruges.
In a race that had been tightly controlled throughout and widely expected to end in a sprint dominated by Wiebes, the decisive moment came in the final metres as Lloyd anticipated the finish perfectly, going early and sustaining her effort to the line.
Wiebes, the pre-race favourite and defending champion, was unable to fully contest the sprint after becoming boxed in at a crucial moment, only finding space too late to challenge for victory.
Late chaos opens door for surprise result
The race had built steadily towards a bunch sprint, with all breakaway attempts neutralised and SD Worx-Protime taking control in the closing kilometres to set up Wiebes. However, the final kilometres were far from straightforward.
A crash inside the last five kilometres disrupted the peloton and removed Charlotte Kool from contention, adding further disorder to an already tense run-in on narrow, wet roads.
As the sprint trains formed, Lidl-Trek moved to the front to position Elisa Balsamo, while Wiebes was forced to fight her way back through the bunch after briefly losing position inside the final 10 kilometres. Despite that late surge forward, the sprint did not unfold as expected.
Lloyd launched her effort earlier than the established favourites, catching the field off guard and quickly opening a decisive gap. With the favourites hesitating momentarily and struggling for position behind, the move proved impossible to bring back.
By the time Wiebes found a clear road, the opportunity had passed, with Lloyd maintaining her advantage all the way to the line to secure a breakthrough victory.
Earlier in the race, crosswinds and wet conditions had briefly stretched the peloton, while repeated attacks, including a late move from Alison Jackson, failed to gain any lasting advantage. Ultimately, the race came down to positioning and timing in the final sprint, where Lloyd executed her effort to perfection to take the biggest win of her career.
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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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