Mathieu van der Poel wins Tour of Flanders
Dutch rider Mathieu van der Poel has won this year’s Tour of Flanders cycling classic. Van der Poel fought off Flemish rival Wout Van Aert after a fall put a third strong contender Julian Alaphilippe of France out of the running. Norway’s Alexander Kristoff came home third.
The finale of this year’s Tour supplied the excitement fans are eager for, if not the result. A difference of 7.5cm separated the riders at the finish. Mathieu van der Poel completed the race in 5 hours 43 minutes and 22 seconds.
This year’s Tour of Flanders was postponed from 5 April to today due to the corona emergency. Corona cast a long shadow over the event that usually also includes a race for amateurs on the Saturday. This year fans were not welcome when Mayor of Antwerp Bart De Wever started the race in his home city at 10AM this morning. Appeals had been made not to line the route as is the custom but to watch the event at home on television, radio or online.
Ahead of the start all riders got a temperature reading as an extra precaution.
This was the 104th outing for the Tour of Flanders, seen as the highlight of the Flemish cycling calendar.
This year’s race covered a distance of 243 kilometres from Antwerp to Oudenaarde, Capital of the Flemish Ardennes (East Flanders).
