UCI Womens World Tour 2026 4 2026-02-28 2026-02-28 The 2026 Omloop Het Nieuwsblad Donne marks the official start of the spring classics for the women’s peloton, taking the riders on a 137.2-kilometer journey from Ghent to Ninove. The strategic narrative for this edition centers on the iconic combination of the Muur van Geraardsbergen and the Bosberg, which serve as the final decisive obstacles before the finish. Riders must navigate a technical route featuring eight brutal bergs and several treacherous cobbled sectors. The primary challenge is the positioning battle leading into the Molenberg, where the race typically shatters into elite groups, forcing favorites to decide whether to launch a long-range attack or wait for the steep ramps of the Chapel Wall. The headline story focuses on the tactical chess match between the dominant Team SD Worx-Protime, featuring defending champion Lotte Kopecky and the prolific Lorena Wiebes, and the surging FDJ-SUEZ squad led by Demi Vollering. Vollering, riding her custom Euro-themed Specialized Tarmac SL8, aims to disrupt the SD Worx stranglehold on the Belgian cobbles. Additionally, the international field sees the highly anticipated return of Katarzyna Niewiadoma and the debut of 19-year-old British sensation Imogen Wolff. With a favorable tailwind predicted for the run-in to Ninove, any separation created on the Muur could prove definitive in the race for the first major classic trophy of the season. 2435384