On Friday there will be another race on Belgian soil. The rates are now following each other in rapid succession and be honest, nobody really cares, right? With the Bredene Koksijde Classic, the sprinters get a chance to take a shot at victory, but there are still a number of privateers on the coast. We are mainly talking about the Moeren and the strong wind. Who are the contenders for the win? Cycling Flash looks ahead!
History
The Bredene Koksijde Classic is a fairly young race. The competition was organized for the first time in 2011. At the time, the one-day race was still called the Handzame Classic, a name that probably rings a bell among cycling enthusiasts. After 2018, the name was changed, which also ensured that Koksijde became the new arrival place. The seaside resort will certainly be so until 2024.
Race organizer Bert Pattyn thought it was a pity, the ‘abandonment’ of Handzame. “It hurts my heart, everything started in Handzame. But we had no choice. We were too limited in terms of accommodation and logistics. Of course, the move to Koksijde is also financially interesting.” Bredene itself had been the starting point of the race for a while and so a new name was quickly found: Bredene Koksijde Classic. The date remained the same: shortly after Nokere Koerse and the day before Milan-San Remo.
In 2015 Gianni Meersman won – photo: Cor Vos
Riders such as Johan Museeuw (2002), Jaan Kirsipuu (2004), Robbie McEwen (2006) and Danilo Napolitano (2009) won the West Flemish race for the first ‘real’ edition. That was in 2011, when the race continued under its own flag. Steve Sketch was the first laureate. Two more Belgians followed with Kenny Dehaes (2013) and Gianni Meersman (2015).
The only Dutchman on the honors list is Hans Dekkers, who won in 2007 when the race was still part of the Three Days of West Flanders. Almost all winners have one thing in common: they are sprinters. Álvaro Hodeg, Tim Merlier and Pascal Ackermann are examples of winners of the last editions. The German fast man Ackermann is also the record winner with two victories.
Latest winners Bredene Koksijde Classic
2022: Pascal Ackermann
2021: Tim Merlier
2020: Not ridden due to the corona crisis
2019: 
Pascal Ackermann
2018: Alvaro Hodeg
2017: Kristoffer Halvorsen
2016: Erik Baska
2015: 
Gianni Meersman
2014: Luka Mezgec
2013: Kenny Dehaes
Latest edition
An early breakaway of five riders lasted a very long time last year. Patrick Gamper (BORA-hansgrohe), Adrien Petit (Intermarché -Wanty-Gobert), Karl Patrick Lauk (Bingoal Pauwels Sauces WB), Kasper Saver (Minerva Cycling) and Thibau Verhofstadt (Tarteletto-Isorex) started early and were able to reach continue to finish the absolute final for the peloton.
That was a strong performance, as they rode a high pace in the peloton. Especially in the hilly zone, where a number of riders such as Victor Campenaerts and Dries De Bondt tried it. However, they never got far, so the peloton rode in a controlled direction towards the local lap. In the end they caught the attackers there at a good seven kilometers from the finish.
Then we had a chaotic sprint preparation. Top favorite Tim Merlier lost his train and Arnaud De Lie also had to come a long way. It was the German Pascal Ackermann who started his sprint from afar and was able to hold it. Hugo Hofstetter ended up in second place, Merlier was third.
photo: Cor Vos
Results Bredene Koksijde Classic 2022
1. Pascal Ackermann (UAE Emirates)
2. Hugo Hofstetter (Arkea Samsic)
3. Tim Merlier (Alpecin-Fenix)
4. Sam Welsford (Team DSM)
5. Gerben Thijssen (Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert)
Match report
Course
The Bredene Koksijde Classic is a race for sprinters. You can immediately see that in the profile of the West Flemish race. In total, the riders have to cover 191 kilometers. Slopes are very rare. The last real hill is about 90 kilometers from the finish. Still, a sprint is not a certainty, because in the second phase of the one-day race the peloton passes the Moeren.
The start of the Bredene Koksijde Classic is in, yes, Bredene. Via Nieuwpoort, Lo-Reinige and Ypres, among others, we head towards the first and only hilly zone of the day. Two climbs of the Kemmelberg (on two different sides) and one of the Rodeberg await there. The course can be made hard here, but it is difficult to carry on a real effort to the end.
That has a lot to do with the Moers. We mentioned it just now, but a passage through the Moeren is always exciting. The wind has free rein and if a few teams take the initiative, the course can explode completely. However, a lot depends on the wind force that day. After the Moeren, the peloton rides towards the finish in Koksijde, where the local laps are on the menu.
A total of three local rounds must be completed. These loops are almost flat and have no real obstacles. Attacking is therefore difficult in the final phase of the Bredene Koksijde Classic. The sprinter teams will organize themselves with one goal in mind: a mass sprint in Koksijde.
Friday 17 March: Bredene – Koksijde (191 km)
Start: 12:15 p.m
Finish: between 4.10 pm and 4.30 pm
Favorites
Seven WorldTour teams will be present in the Bredene Koksijde Classic on Friday. The teams in question are UAE Emirates, Soudal Quick-Step, Alpecin-Deceuninck, Intermarché-Circus-Wanty, Arkéa Samsic, Trek-Segafredo and Team DSM. Furthermore, teams such as Lotto Dstny, Israel-Premier Tech, TotalEnergies and Uno-X are also at the start.
We start with UAE Emirates. The big eye-catcher in the selection is Pascal Ackermann, the record holder of the Bredene Koksijde Classic. The German won the race in 2019 and 2022 and is therefore one of the men to beat. Still, we don’t have too much confidence in Ackermann, as he is not too good this season. He did not come closer than third place in the Saudi Tour. UAE Emirates has met Juan Sebastian Molano also an extra sprinter behind, making them one of the strongest teams on Friday.
Ackermann can one hat trick scoring in West Flanders – photo: Cor Vos
We also find a strong block at Soudal Quick-Step. Tim Merlier is the clear leader. The Belgian fast man has already won four times (individually) this season and is therefore more than okay. Merlier already won the Bredene Koksijde Classic two years ago. In other words, he is the big favorite for the win. Should Merlier have a lesser day, Ethan Vernon can also make a shot at victory. The young Briton has already triumphed three times this season.
Alpecin-Deceuninck will hope for a motivated Jakub Mareczko. The Italian is very fast at the finish, but he has to get there. In the past, he often had to let go of the role when a hill came up. That may also be the reason that Gianni Vermeersch also comes into action on Friday. The gravel world champion will not win in the sprint, but can make the race hard. The latter would be a good scenario for Hugo Hofstetter and Jenthe Biermans. The two riders of Arkéa Samsic have a considerable sprint in their legs, but above all hope for a difficult race. Then their sprint is really fast.
Merlier won the first stage of Paris-Nice – photo: Cor Vos
Of Victor Campenaerts and Florian Vermeersch, Lotto Dstny has two classic drivers in their ranks on Friday. They will have to find allies in order not to turn the course into a sprint. They are capable of that, because the two Belgians have a lot of class. If there is a sprint in Koksijde, Jarne Van De Paar will try to win for Lotto Dstny. The young Fleming can survive a tough race and is quite fast on the line.
Team DSM and Intermarché-Circus-Wanty are two of the teams that will do everything to get a bunch sprint. They have respectively Sam Welsford and Gerben Thijssen an interesting sprinter in their selection. We mainly look at the Australian, who was able to put his hands in the air three times this season. In the Vuelta a San Juan, Welsford even did that twice against the fastest men on this planet. Is he the man who will put the heat on Merlier?
Welsford won the GP Criquielion – photo: Cor Vos
Thibau Nys and Edward Theuns make a nice duo at Trek-Segafredo. Nys already showed many beautiful things, but the question is whether he will survive a race of almost 200 kilometers. It will also be the first time for Nys that he will ride through the Moeren in the professional peloton. With these things in mind, we think that Theuns might just have an edge, even if it’s a tiny one. At Q36.5, there is one clear candidate for victory: Matteo Moschetti. The Italian won the Clasica de Almeria in Spain by beating Arnaud De Lie and Jordi Meeus, among others. On a good day, Moschetti can handle a lot of sprinters.
The last squad we discuss is Israel-Premier Tech. We don’t give any rider a star, but we do quote them. That’s because they have a number of drivers who can do well, but basically fall short of victory. We are talking about Sep Vanmarcke, Jens Reynders and Itamar Einhorn. Vanmarcke and Reynders left a DNF record in their last race and Israeli Einhorn is normally not fast enough to follow the very best riders in the sprint. However, we do not write them off.
Can Theuns surprise? – photo: Cor Vos
Finally, we mention a lot of outsiders. Fast men like Matteo Malucelli (Bingoal WB), Sasha Weemaes (Human Powered Health), Attilo Viviani (Team Corratec), Kristoffer Halvorsen (Uno-X), Aaron Gate (Bolton Equities Black Spoke), Timothy Dupont (Tarteletto-Isorex), Martijn Budding (TDT-Unibet), Coen Vermeltfoort (VolkerWessels) and Jules Hesters (Flanders-Baloise) should be able to finish in the top 10. Dries Van Gestel, Edvald Boasson Hagen (both TotalEnergies) and Tom Devriendt (Q36.5) hope for a tough race.
Favorites according to WielerFlits
**** Tim Merlier
*** Sam Welsford, Pascal Ackermann
** Gerben Thijssen, Hugo Hofstetter, Juan Sebastian Molano
* Matteo Moschetti, Jakub Mareczko, Victor Campenaerts, Edward Theuns
Website organization
Participant List (ProCyclingStats)
Weather and TV
It won’t be a very pleasant day on the bike on Friday. The temperatures are not too bad, because Weeronline expects about 14 degrees Celsius in the afternoon. That is the only pleasant thing, because rain and a lot of wind are predicted. The wind from the south, which will blow with a force of 4 Beaufort, can certainly play a role.
The Bredene Koksijde Classic can be followed live in the Belgian and Dutch living rooms. Sporzaon Acomes with a broadcast from 2.30 p.m. Euro sports 1 also ensures that many cycling enthusiasts can view the course. Their broadcast also starts at 2.30 pm. You can also go online at Eurosport.nl/Discovery+/GCN+ to look. For more information you can always visit our TV guide Cycling on TV.
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Tags: Preview Bredene Koksijde Classic sprinters survive Moeren
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