While most of the world turns their attention to Italy and France for the Strade Bianche and Paris-Nice, Belgium offers an alternative path for the classics riders. The Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen has traditionally been an opportunity for some of the lesser known riders to shine and while the time triallists usually decide the GC, the road stages are usually dominated by sprinters.

Belgium may mostly be known for one-day races but the country plays host to a few shorter stage races too. While the Eneco Tour, the Tour of Belgium and the Driedaagse van De Panne are the best-known multi-day events in the cycling-mad country, the Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen plays a more anonymous role as an early spring event.

Taking place in West Flanders, it is no surprise that it doesn’t have any major climbs and so it is offer the kind of racing that characterizes Flanders. Cobbles, hellingen and wind are the main challenge in this part of the country and this means that it is a true Belgian race for classics riders and sprinters.

Belgian stage races often have an all-important time trial and after a few years when the sprinters were allowed to battle it out for the win, the organizers have tipped the GC balance in favour of the time triallists by including an opening race against the clock. With the two road stages usually being dominated by the sprinters, the opening stage is usually crucial in determining the outcome and it is no surprise that the last four editions have all been won by great rouleurs that have finished in the top 2 on the opening day.

The Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen takes place at a busy time of the year. The main stars are all preparing for Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico and many have been riding in Belgium in the opening weekend. Hence, the Flemish stage race has usually offered a chance for some of the domestiques to shine and has often been a happy hunting ground for young, upcoming stars who get a rare opportunity to take a leadership role. Together with Le Samyn, it offers an alternative approach to the classics for riders that are not selected for any of the two big WorldTour stage races.

The course

After several editions dominated by sprinters, the opening prologue was introduced in 2011 and since then the race has had an unchanged format. The time trial has usually decided the GC while the sprinters have fought it out in the two road stages. However, bad weather always has the potential to wreak havoc on the peloton in this part of Belgium and on certain occasions, the road stages have been a lot more selective. The combination of wind, cobbles and hellingen is always a dangerous one and what should be an easy sprint stage can suddenly turn out to be a race of attrition.

The 2015 edition of the race will follow the well-known formula. Friday will be the day of the 7km prologue in Middelkerke and it has been unchanged since it was introduced in 2011. It consists of a completely flay out-and-back run along the coast and has very few corners, meaning that it is one for the really powerful specialists.

The first stage will bring the riders over 174.1km from Brugge to Harelbeke. After a flat opening section, the riders head into the Flemish Ardennes where they will go up the famous Oude Kwaremont after 100.4km of racing. That will be the only climb though and the riders will then turn around to head back north to Harelbeke where they will finish the race by doing four laps of a 9.9km finishing circuit. With the Kwaremont at the midpoint, the stage resembles Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne but with a long, flat stretch in the end, only bad weather seems to have the potential to prevent a bunch sprint.

The second road stage has usually been the most difficult one. It brings the riders over 184.5km from Nieuwpoort to Ichtegem and after a flat start, it enters the well-known Gent-Wevelgem terrain when the riders go up the Rodeberg, Monteberg and Kemmelberg at the midpoint. Then the riders turn around to go back up to Ichtegem that they already passed earlier in the stage and here they will end the race by doing 3 laps of an 11.5km finishing circuit. With the two small climbs of Keidenberg and Ruidenberg, it is not completely flat but as it has been used several years in a row, most of the riders know what to expect. Usually, it is not enough to split the field and the race has mostly been decided in a bunch sprint but last year Guillaume van Keirsbulck managed to deny the sprinters with a late move. In 2012, bad weather made it more selective than usual and cost Michal Kwiatkowski the overall win when his teammate Julien Vermote took the lead on the final day.

Prologue:

Stage 1:

Stage 2:

The favourites

The Driedaagse van West-Vlaanderen follows a well-known formula with a virtually unchanged route and so everybody knows what to expect. The opening time trial is likely to determine the final GC but the best time triallists still have to stay attentive in the road stages where splits can occur in the crosswinds or in the hectic finales. Furthermore, the bonus seconds can come into play as the time differences are usually very small and if a sprinter can limit his losses in the prologue, he may have a chance to win.

Usually, sprinters are pretty good prologue riders but the nature of the opening time trial suits the really powerful riders so much that it is very hard for them to limit their losses enough to stay in overall contention. As the best time triallists usually ride for one of the major WorldTour teams which are usually strong enough to control the race, the winner of the prologue has usually been able to defend his lead in the road stages. The 2012 edition was the main exception when a crash for Michal Kwiatkowski in the final stage saw his teammate Julien Vermote win the race overall.

With the weather forecast predicting calm conditions, the race is likely to be won by the best time triallists. None of the sprinters in this race are very good time triallists and this means that they are likely to lose so much time that they take the win by picking enough bonus seconds. The fact that the race is likely to come down to a battle between the specialists is reflected in the start list as many teams have lined up some of their best time triallists.

Already in his first year as a professional, Anton Vorobyev showed that his U23 world championships win was no fluke. While he occasionally did very well in the time trials, however, he seemed to be very inconsistent and he had a very hard time in the road races. Towards the end of last year, he seemed to have become a lot stronger and he seemed to cope better with the climbing. He proved his strength when he finished 8th at the World Championships which was definitely not held on a flat course.

The short power route in Middelkerke suits him down to the ground and he showed his good condition when he finished fifth behind some of the best time triallists in the world in the Volta ao Algarve time trial. There is no doubt that this race is a big goal for him as it is one of the select few that he can win overall. With a strong Katusha team to support him in the road stages, he should be able to defend an overall lead and with his good condition, he is our favourite to win the time trial. This makes him our overall winner pick.

Every year this race is a big goal for Jesse Sergent who took the overall win in 2011 and finished second in 2012. With his track background, the Kiwi is perfectly suited to this kind of short, intense effort. Over the last few years, however, he seems to have become a lot better in the longer time trials while he is no longer as good as he was in the shorter ones. That was recently put on show in Andalusia where he could only manage 14th in the short time trial. With its less technical nature, however, this stage suits him a lot better and he is one of the big favourites to win the race overall.

Another good candidate is Jan Barta. By finishing third in the long time trial at last year’s Tour de France, the strong Czech has proved that he is now one of the very best time triallists in the world. He would probably have preferred a longer course but last year he was fourth in a very similar time trial in the Tour of Britain, proving that he can also do well on shorter distances. Our main concern is his form as he didn’t seem to be too strong in the Volta ao Algarve where he finished outside the top 10 in the time trial. Since then his form is likely to have improved and this makes him an obvious contender.

Having ridden for continental teams, Rasmus Quaade doesn’t have a lot of experience at this level but this year he will get more chances to show himself as he has joined the Cult team. The Dane will make his season debut in West-Flanders but as he has been riding on the track, his condition can’t be too bad. In fact, training on the boards may have given him the perfect preparation for this kind of effort and as he has proved twice at the Worlds, he is able to match the very best in the TTs. The course may be a bit too short to suit him perfectly and he may have a hard time defending the lead in the road stages but he is definitely a contender for the time trial.

For several years, Yves Lampaert was known as Topsport Vlaanderen’s TT specialist. This year he has got his chance in the WorldTour as he has signed a contract with Etixx-QuickStep. After a slow start in Australia, he showed good form when he finished 11th in the Algarve TT and he was one of the strongest riders in last Sunday’s Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. There are definitely bigger specialists than Lampaert but he clearly has the form to create a surprise.

Vorobyev is not the only Katusha card. Ilnur Zakarin is a great time triallists too and he showed great condition in the Trofeo Laigueglia where he seemed to be the strongest rider. He is a former Russian time trial champion and he recently finished 6th in the San Luis TT. Being a typical stage race rider, he would have preferred a hillier course and this may be a bit too much about power to suit him perfectly. However, he clearly has the form to be up there.

Another in-form rider is Hugo Houle who created a major surprise when he nearly beat Adriano Malori and Michal Kwiatkowski in the San Luis TT. Since then he has been riding well in the first classics and he has clearly stepped up his level a lot. He still needs to confirm that his San Luis performance was not a once-in-a-lifetime performance but if he can repeat that effort, he can win this race.

Stijn Devolder is no longer the time triallist he once was but he usually does pretty well in this time trial. Last year he was fourth and in 2013 he was sixth, proving that he knows how to handle this course. He hasn’t shown great condition yet but as he is gearing up for the classics, his form can’t be too bad. If Sergent fails, Devolder provides Trek with another card to play.

The only sprinter with a chance in this race is the in-form Kris Boeckmans. The Belgian is in excellent condition as he proved in the Le Samyn and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. He is not known as a time trial specialist but he did a really good TT in the Etoile de Besseges. If he can limit his losses, bonus seconds may allow him to win the race.

Defending champion Gert Joeaar created a major surprise last year but since then he has not been even close to repeating his great performance in the time trials. Hence, it will be another big surprise if he repeats his win but he will of course be very motivated. Patrick Gretsch is another good time triallist but he is no longer the rider he once was and doesn’t seem to be in his best condition. On paper, Campbell Flakemore and Gustav Larsson should be able to do well but both are coming back from injury and so we can’t expect too much from them. The same goes for another TT specialist Jan Ghyselinck. Instead, it could be a good idea to keep an eye on Jimmy Engoulvent and Sean De Bie who have both done well in short time trials in the past.

***** Anton Vorobyev

**** Jesse Sergent, Jan Barta

*** Rasmus Quaade, Yves Lampaert, Ilnur Zakarin, Hugo Houle, Stin Devolder, Kris Boeckmans, Guillaume van Keirsbulck

** Gert Joeaar, Patrick Gretsch, Campbell Flakemore, Gustav Larsson, Jan Ghyselinck, Jimmy Engoulvent, Sean De Bie

* Alexis Gougeard, Joey Rosskopf, Iljo Keisse, Petr Vakoc, David Boucher, Martijn Keizer, Victor Campenaerts, Christoph Pfingsten