UCI Womens World Tour 2026 8 2026-03-26 2026-03-26 The 9th edition of the Tour of Bruges—formerly known as the Classic Brugge-De Panne—took the Women's WorldTour peloton on a 143.7km journey through the heart of West Flanders. The primary challenge of the day was the relentless wind and rain, which threatened to create echelons in the exposed coastal sections heading toward Torhout. For the elite sprinters, the objective was to stay protected and avoid the "chaos" of the narrow Belgian roads, while the tactical priority for teams like SD Worx-Protime was to set up a dominant lead-out for the defending champion, Lorena Wiebes. Strategically, the race was expected to be a controlled affair, but the objective for the field changed when a crash inside the final 5km disrupted the peloton and removed top contender Charlotte Kool from the mix. With the wet roads making the final approach to Bruges increasingly technical, the tactical priority shifted toward individual positioning rather than a clean team train. As the sprint opened up, the goal for the favorites was to find clear air, while a young British debutant looked to exploit any hesitation from the established stars. 2435388