CYCLING – TEAM Bahrain Victorious continue their participation on the UCI World Tour’s 2026 calendar this week with the ongoing Volta a Catalunya before shifting their focus back to Belgium, where the atmosphere is building towards the Tour of Flanders in the coming weeks.
Before that, a key block of cobbled Classics begins with Ronde van Brugge, taking place today.
The one-day race represents a new version of what was previously known as Brugge-De Panne. While the organisers have redesigned the parcours, now featuring both start and finish in Brugge, its essence remains unchanged: a flat and fast race traditionally suited to sprinters.
The route starts from the Markt, the historic centre of Brugge, and initially heads south through Torhout, Wingene, and Beernem before returning to the Brugge area. From there, the race enters a decisive circuit phase.
After a first passage over the finish line on the wide Gulden-Vlieslaan, the peloton will complete two laps of a 59-kilometre circuit. This includes a short cobbled section on Brieversweg of 1.3km and several exposed, fast sections along the Damse Vaart, part of the 2021 UCI Road World Championships time trial course. The total race distance is 202.9km.
The new course presents a double challenge, especially considering the expected weather conditions. Heavy rain and strong winds are forecast, increasing the likelihood of echelons and splits in the peloton well before the finale.
“It’s a new parcours, so we don’t know exactly how the race will unfold, but it’s clear that the wind and rain will make it very hard,” said Bahrain Victorious sports director Nikolas Maes. “These conditions usually create echelons, with the race opening up and coming back together repeatedly.
“It will be crucial to be attentive from the start due to the weather forecast. The focus will be on bringing our leaders into the key zones and surviving the splits. Mental sharpness and strong bike handling in these conditions will be essential to stay in the front group.”
Bahrain Victorious will aim to be competitive in the sprint with experienced fast man Phil Bauhaus alongside young talent Zak Erzen, who over the weekend showed strong form with a sixth-place finish at GP Monsere.
They will be supported by Oliver Stockwell and Kamil Gradek, who will play a key role in protecting the leaders early in the race. Alberto Bruttomesso, Daniel Skerl, and Attila Valter will focus on positioning the team ahead of the crucial sectors.
“We have the ambition to go for the sprint, but the harder the race becomes, the more difficult it will be to be there in the final,” Maes added.
“With Zak showing good form recently and Phil bringing a lot of experience, we believe we can survive in a reduced group of around 20 to 25 riders.
“That’s the scenario we are aiming for, arriving at the finish after a hard race and fighting for a good result.”
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