The 2015 Tour of Flanders ( nl, 2015 Ronde van Vlaanderen) was the 99th edition of the
Tour of Flanders
The Tour of Flanders ( nl, Ronde van Vlaanderen), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders, it is part of the UCI World Tour and organi ...
one-day cycling race. It took place on 5 April and was the eighth race of the
2015 UCI World Tour
The 2015 UCI World Tour was the seventh edition of the ranking system launched by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) in 2009. The series started with the opening stage of the Tour Down Under on 20 January, and concluded with Il Lombardia on 4 ...
. The race was one of the
cobbled classics
The cobbled classics are four cycling classics held in March and April. Cobblestones, like mountainous terrain, are important elements in courses of cycling. Many classic cycle races in northwestern Europe contain cobbled sections. The two Monumen ...
and was the second of the
cycling monument
The Monuments are five classic cycle races generally considered to be the oldest, hardest and most prestigious one-day events in men's road cycling.
They each have a long history and specific individual characteristics. They are currently the one-d ...
s on the 2015 calendar. The
2014 champion was
Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He was born in Wohlen bei Bern, Switzerland. Cancellara began r ...
; he was not able to defend his title after breaking two vertebrae in a crash at
E3 Harelbeke
E3 Saxo Bank Classic, previously known as E3 BinckBank Classic, E3 Harelbeke, Harelbeke–Antwerp–Harelbeke and E3-Prijs Vlaanderen, is an annual road cycling race in Flanders, Belgium. The race starts and finishes in Harelbeke, covering 203 kil ...
.
The race was initially dominated by a breakaway group of up to seven riders before the favourites in the chasing group started to attack on the climb of the
Taaienberg
The Taaienberg is a hill in the municipality of Maarkedal, in the Belgium, Belgian province of East Flanders. With its top at 90 m, it is one of many hill formations in the Flemish Ardennes, in the south of East-Flanders. The slopes of the hi ...
, from the finish. Eventually,
Alexander Kristoff
Alexander Kristoff (born 5 July 1987) is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the Norwegian National Road Race Championships in 2007 and 2011. His biggest victories have been the 2014 Milan ...
and
Niki Terpstra
Niki Terpstra (; born 18 May 1984) is a Dutch racing cyclist, who rides for UCI ProTeam . He is the brother of fellow racing cyclist Mike Terpstra. He is the third Dutch cyclist to have won both of the cobbled Monument spring classics, Paris–Ro ...
broke free and contested the victory in a two-man sprint, won by Kristoff, who became the first Norwegian to win the race.
Greg Van Avermaet
Greg Van Avermaet (born 17 May 1985) is a Belgian professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Considered one of the most versatile riders of modern cycling, Van Avermaet is a specialist of the classic cycle races, but has also ...
finished third.
Route
The route of the 2015 edition of the race was only slightly adjusted from that of the
2014 edition, with two climbs added to the route in the first , the Tiegemberg and the Berendries.
It was in length, longer than in the previous year and featured 19 small climbs, some of them cobbled.
The race started in the Belgian city of
Bruges
Bruges ( , nl, Brugge ) is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium, in the northwest of the country, and the sixth-largest city of the countr ...
, in the
Grote Markt, with a
neutral zone. The racing began after the riders passed through Loppen, on the outskirts of Brugge. The first part of the route was a route south to the city of
Kortrijk
Kortrijk ( , ; vls, Kortryk or ''Kortrik''; french: Courtrai ; la, Cortoriacum), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Regio ...
, passing through
Zwevezele
Zwevezele (Pronunciation: weːvəzeːlə) is a town in the Belgian province of West Flanders. It has been part of the Wingene municipality since 1 January 1977. Zwevezele has over 5,000 inhabitants. Between Zwevezele and Wingene there is a hamle ...
,
Ardooie
Ardooie (; vls, Ardôoie) is a municipality in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the towns of Ardooie proper and Koolskamp. In 2006 Ardooie had a total population of 9,147. The local inhabitants are called Ardoo ...
and
Izegem
Izegem (; vls, Yzegem) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of West Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Izegem proper and the towns of Emelgem and Kachtem. Emelgem was added to Izegem in 1965, Kachtem in 1977. Iz ...
. This part of the route was almost entirely flat.
After Kortrijk, the route turned east towards the region known as the
Flemish Ardennes
The Flemish Ardennes (Dutch: ''Vlaamse Ardennen'') is an informal name given to a hilly region in the south of the province of East Flanders, Belgium. Highest summit is the Hotondberg (145 m). Main characteristics of the region are rural hilly lan ...
.
The final were kept from the 2014 edition, with the toughest part of the race starting at the steep Koppenberg. In the last , five climbs were set to prove decisive: the Steenbeekdries at remaining, the Taaienberg at remaining, the Kruisberg with to go, the
Oude Kwaremont
The Oude Kwaremont (English: ''Old Kwaremont'') is a road in Kluisbergen, a municipality in the Belgian province of East Flanders. The Oude Kwaremont, contrary to popular belief, is not the name of a hill, but the name of one of the cobbled roads ...
at remaining and finally the
Paterberg
The Paterberg is a hill in the municipality of Kluisbergen, in the Belgian province of East Flanders. With its top at 80 m, it is one of many hill formations in the Flemish Ardennes, close to Wallonia. The slopes of the hill were unpaved unt ...
, before the finish.
[ Several climbs needed to be tackled more than once, as the route took two laps of a circuit. These included the Oude Kwaremont, which was ridden three times, first after as the second climb of the day and the Paterberg, which was featured twice.][
Ronde van Vlaanderen 2015 lap1.png, First lap of the circuit (red) and transition to the second lap (green).
Ronde van Vlaanderen 2015 lap2.png, Second lap of the circuit (red) and final (green)
]
Teams
As the Tour of Flanders was a UCI World Tour event, all 17 UCI WorldTeams UCI most commonly refers to:
* University of California, Irvine, a public university in Irvine, California, United States
* Union Cycliste Internationale, the world governing body for the sport of cycling
UCI may also refer to:
* Uganda Cancer In ...
were invited automatically and were obliged to send a squad. Eight Professional Continental teams received wildcard invitations.
Pre-race favourites
The field of the race was marked by the absence of defending champion Fabian Cancellara
Fabian Cancellara (born 18 March 1981), nicknamed "Spartacus", is a Swiss cycling executive, businessman and former professional road racing cyclist who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He was born in Wohlen bei Bern, Switzerland. Cancellara began r ...
() and former winner Tom Boonen
Tom Boonen (; born 15 October 1980) is a Belgian former road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional between 2002 and 2017 for the and teams and a professional racing driver who currently competes in Belcar, having previously competed in ...
(), both ruled out by crashes earlier in the season. Several riders were named as potential favourites for the victory, among them Geraint Thomas
Geraint Howell Thomas, (; born 25 May 1986) is a Welsh professional racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam , Wales and Great Britain. He is one of the few riders in the modern era to achieve significant elite success as both a tra ...
(), who came into the race after a victory at E3 Harelbeke
E3 Saxo Bank Classic, previously known as E3 BinckBank Classic, E3 Harelbeke, Harelbeke–Antwerp–Harelbeke and E3-Prijs Vlaanderen, is an annual road cycling race in Flanders, Belgium. The race starts and finishes in Harelbeke, covering 203 kil ...
and a third-place finish at Gent–Wevelgem
Gent–Wevelgem, officially Gent–Wevelgem – In Flanders Fields, is a road bicycle racing, road cycling race in Belgium, held annually since 1934. It is one of the classic cycle races, classic races part of the Flemish Cycling Week, run in late ...
just a few days before. In the absence of Cancellara, 's squad was led by Stijn Devolder
Stijn Devolder (born 29 August 1979) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer, who competed professionally for (2002–2003), (2004–2007), (2008–2010), (2011–2012), (2013–2016), (2017–2018) and (2019).
Career
Born in ...
, the only former winner in the peloton
In a road bicycle race, the peloton (from French, originally meaning 'platoon') is the main group or pack of riders. Riders in a group save energy by riding close ( drafting or slipstreaming) to (particularly behind) other riders. The reductio ...
, although he was not considered to have the best chances. 's squad featured Niki Terpstra
Niki Terpstra (; born 18 May 1984) is a Dutch racing cyclist, who rides for UCI ProTeam . He is the brother of fellow racing cyclist Mike Terpstra. He is the third Dutch cyclist to have won both of the cobbled Monument spring classics, Paris–Ro ...
, Zdeněk Štybar
Zdeněk Štybar (; born 11 December 1985) is a Czech professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . While best known as a cyclo-cross racer, in 2011 Štybar began his professional road career while continuing to race cyclo-cross.
...
, and Stijn Vandenbergh
Stijn Vandenbergh (born 25 April 1984) is a Belgian former professional road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2007 and 2020 for the , , and teams.
Born in Oudenaarde, Vandenbergh, as a first year professional, won the first stag ...
, all of whom were considered serious contenders. was led by Alexander Kristoff
Alexander Kristoff (born 5 July 1987) is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the Norwegian National Road Race Championships in 2007 and 2011. His biggest victories have been the 2014 Milan ...
and Luca Paolini
Luca Paolini (born 17 January 1977) is an Italian former road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2000 and 2015. He started his sports career in the early 2000s by joining (2000–2002), UCI ProTeam directed by Patrick Lefevere. With ...
, the latter of which had proven his good form by winning Gent–Wevelgem earlier in the week, but had declared to work for Kristoff for this race. Other possible contenders included Milan–San Remo
Milan–San Remo (in Italian ''Milano-Sanremo''), also called "''The Spring classic''" or "''La Classicissima''", is an annual road cycling race between Milan and Sanremo, in Northwest Italy. With a distance of 298 km (~185.2 miles) it is t ...
winner John Degenkolb
John Degenkolb (born 7 January 1989) is a German professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His biggest wins to date are the 2015 Milan–San Remo and the 2015 Paris–Roubaix, two of cycling's five monuments. He i ...
() and Peter Sagan
Peter Sagan (; born 26 January 1990) is a Slovak professional road bicycle racer who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . Sagan had a successful junior cyclo-cross and mountain bike racing career, winning the junior cross-country race at the 2008 ...
(), although Sagan's form had been called into question prior to the race. In addition, commentators named Greg Van Avermaet
Greg Van Avermaet (born 17 May 1985) is a Belgian professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Considered one of the most versatile riders of modern cycling, Van Avermaet is a specialist of the classic cycle races, but has also ...
(), Sep Vanmarcke
Sep Vanmarcke (born 27 July 1988) is a Belgian professional road racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . In August 2021 he was named to the start list for the Vuelta a España, his seventh Grand Tour.
Career
Vanmarcke was born in ...
(), Lars Boom
Lars Anthonius Johannes Boom (born 30 December 1985) is a professional cyclo-cross and mountain bike racing cyclist from the Netherlands. He has also competed professionally in road racing, between 2004 and 2019.
Born in Vlijmen, Netherlands, B ...
(), Filippo Pozzato
Filippo "Pippo" Pozzato (born 10 September 1981) is an Italian former road racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2000 and 2018 for the , , , , , , and two spells with the / teams.
A northern classics specialist, Pozzato finished in s ...
(), Jürgen Roelandts
Jürgen Roelandts (born 2 July 1985) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2008 and 2020, for the , and squads. He now works as a directeur sportif for his final professional team, .
Career
In 201 ...
, Jens Debusschere
Jens Debusschere (born 28 August 1989) is a Belgian professional road bicycle racer, who most recently rode for UCI ProTeam . He was named in the start list for the 2015 Tour de France. In May 2018, he was named in the startlist for the 2018 Gi ...
(both ), and Sylvain Chavanel
Sylvain Chavanel''Procycling'', UK, November 2008 (born 30 June 1979) is a French former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2000 and 2018 for the , , and two spells with the / team. His brother Sébastien Chavanel ...
() among the high number of possible contenders. Barry Ryan of ''Cyclingnews.com
Cyclingnews.com is a website providing cycling news and race result owned by Future.
History
In 1995 Australian Bill Mitchell, a keen cyclist and professor of economics at the University of Newcastle, created the website titled "Bill’s Cycli ...
'' declared the race "wide open and ..a nightmare to predict".[
]
Race report
The race started with a small delay caused by a farmers' strike. When racing got under way, five riders broke free of the pack after : Jesse Sergent
Jesse Sergent (born 8 July 1988) is a retired New Zealand racing cyclist who rode professionally between 2011 and 2016 for , and .
Career
Born in Feilding, Sergent won a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, as part of the New Z ...
(), Damien Gaudin
Damien Gaudin (born 20 August 1986 in Beaupréau) is a French former road bicycle racer, who competed as a professional from 2008 to 2021. He competed for France at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
Gaudin left at the end of the 2013 season, and joine ...
(), Ralf Matzka
Ralf Matzka (born August 24, 1989 in Villingen-Schwenningen) is a German former professional cyclist, who rode professionally between 2008 and 2016.
Major results
;2008
: 1st Stage 4 Tour de Korea
: 4th Rund um den Henninger Turm U23
: 4th Tou ...
(), Matt Brammeier
Matthew Martin Brammeier (born 7 June 1985) is a former professional cyclist, who competed professionally between 2006 and 2018 for nine different professional teams. Upon retiring, Brammeier became a coach for British Cycling. He won five title ...
(), and Dylan Groenewegen
Dylan Groenewegen (born 21 June 1993) is a Dutch professional road racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He has won five individual Tour de France stages and one team time trial stage. He has also won the Dutch National Road Rac ...
(), while Clément Venturini
Clément Venturini (born 16 October 1993 in Villeurbanne) is a French cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . In 2011, he won the UCI Junior World Cyclo-cross Championship. In May 2018, he was named in the startlist for the 2018 Giro d'I ...
() was briefly in the front group as well before dropping back. At Sint-Eloois-Winkel
Sint-Eloois-Winkel is a village in the Belgian province of West Flanders. It is a '' deelgemeente'' of the municipality of Ledegem, separated from the center of the town by highway A17. The population of Sint-Eloois-Winkel is 3800, only a few hun ...
, there was a bonus sprint, in which Brammeier won his body weight of in local beer. Lars Bak
Lars Ytting Bak (born 16 January 1980) is a Danish former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2002 and 2019 for the Fakta, , , , and squads. From 2022, Bak will act as team manager for UCI Women's WorldTeam .
Ba ...
() and Marco Frapporti
Marco Frapporti (born 30 March 1985) is an Italian racing cyclist, who last rode for UCI ProTeam .
Major results
;2005
: 3rd Circuito del Porto
;2006
: 6th Trofeo Città di Brescia
;2007
: 1st Giro del Canavese
: 1st Piccolo Giro di Lombardia
...
() were able to bridge the gap to the leaders, creating a group of seven at the front. After of racing, the leaders were about seven minutes clear of the peloton, but the gap started to come down once the riders reached the first climbs.
There were several attacks from the main group when it navigated the area around Oudenaarde
Oudenaarde (; french: Audenarde ; in English sometimes ''Oudenarde'') is a Belgian municipality in the Flemish province of East Flanders. The municipality comprises the city of Oudenaarde proper and the towns of Bevere, Edelare, Eine, Ename, Heu ...
, with André Greipel
André Greipel (born 16 July 1982) is a German former professional road bicycle racer, who rode professionally between 2002 and 2021. Since his retirement, Greipel now works as a directeur sportif for UCI Continental team .
Born in Rostock, East ...
() featuring in all of them, to no avail. Just before the cobble section of the Haaghoek, a neutral car by supplier Shimano
, originally and later , is a Japanese multinational manufacturing company for cycling components, fishing tackles and rowing equipment, who also produced golf supplies until 2005 and snowboarding gear until 2008. Named after founder Shozaburo ...
tried to overtake the leading group and hit Sergent, who fell and had to withdraw with a broken collarbone, which later required surgery. With the lead group now down to six riders, they led the main field by three minutes, with leading the chase, after their rider Bradley Wiggins
Sir Bradley Marc Wiggins, CBE (born 28 April 1980) is a British former professional road and track racing cyclist, who competed professionally between 2001 and 2016. He began his cycling career on the track, but later made the transition to r ...
had recovered from an earlier crash. Another incident involving a car by Shimano occurred a little later when it crashed into the back of a team car, which in turn brought down rider Sébastien Chavanel
Sébastien Chavanel (born 21 March 1981 in Châtellerault) is a retired French professional road bicycle racer who last rode for UCI ProTeam . He is a younger brother, by just under 2 years, to fellow professional cyclist Sylvain Chavanel.
Aft ...
, forcing him to abandon as well.
On the Kaperij, the tenth climb, Bak and Gaudin were able to break free from their group. On the second ascent of the Oude Kwaremont
The Oude Kwaremont (English: ''Old Kwaremont'') is a road in Kluisbergen, a municipality in the Belgian province of East Flanders. The Oude Kwaremont, contrary to popular belief, is not the name of a hill, but the name of one of the cobbled roads ...
, Greipel again unsuccessfully attacked, before the main field reached the breakaway at the top of the climb. On the Koppenberg, Greipel again attacked and an increase in tempo caused Wiggins and other riders to lose contact. At the front, Geraint Thomas
Geraint Howell Thomas, (; born 25 May 1986) is a Welsh professional racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam , Wales and Great Britain. He is one of the few riders in the modern era to achieve significant elite success as both a tra ...
() and Stijn Devolder
Stijn Devolder (born 29 August 1979) is a Belgian former professional road bicycle racer, who competed professionally for (2002–2003), (2004–2007), (2008–2010), (2011–2012), (2013–2016), (2017–2018) and (2019).
Career
Born in ...
() led the chase to bring back Greipel. Once they reached him, Alexey Lutsenko
Alexey Alexandrovich Lutsenko (russian: Алексей Александрович Луценко; born 7 September 1992) is a Kazakh professional cyclist, who rides for UCI WorldTeam .
Career
In 2012 he won the under-23 road race at the UCI R ...
() was on the attack after the climb, leading at a maximum of half a minute.
At the climb of the Taaienberg
The Taaienberg is a hill in the municipality of Maarkedal, in the Belgium, Belgian province of East Flanders. With its top at 90 m, it is one of many hill formations in the Flemish Ardennes, in the south of East-Flanders. The slopes of the hi ...
, from the finish, the favourites came into play. Niki Terpstra
Niki Terpstra (; born 18 May 1984) is a Dutch racing cyclist, who rides for UCI ProTeam . He is the brother of fellow racing cyclist Mike Terpstra. He is the third Dutch cyclist to have won both of the cobbled Monument spring classics, Paris–Ro ...
was the first to move, with Greg Van Avermaet
Greg Van Avermaet (born 17 May 1985) is a Belgian professional cyclist, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . Considered one of the most versatile riders of modern cycling, Van Avermaet is a specialist of the classic cycle races, but has also ...
following after crossing the top, soon followed by a larger group. On the third and final lap of the course, Lutsenko attacked the 26-rider strong group again, joined by Van Avermaet and Nelson Oliveira (). They were caught before the Kruisberg
The Kruisberg, also known as Oude Kruisberg or Oude Kruisens, is a hill and road in the city of Ronse, in Flanders, Belgium. With its top at 122 m altitude, it is one of many hill formations in the Flemish Ardennes, in the south of East-Flande ...
, soon followed by an attack by Terpstra and Alexander Kristoff
Alexander Kristoff (born 5 July 1987) is a Norwegian professional road bicycle racer, who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . He won the Norwegian National Road Race Championships in 2007 and 2011. His biggest victories have been the 2014 Milan ...
. The two created a thirty-second lead and held it to the finish, even with a counter-attack from Van Avermaet and Peter Sagan
Peter Sagan (; born 26 January 1990) is a Slovak professional road bicycle racer who currently rides for UCI ProTeam . Sagan had a successful junior cyclo-cross and mountain bike racing career, winning the junior cross-country race at the 2008 ...
late on. Terpstra did not contribute to the pace making over the last kilometre, trying to use Kristoff's slipstream to win a sprint. This proved unsuccessful however, as Kristoff took the second monument victory of his career, outsprinting Terpstra to the line. He became the first Norwegian to win the race.
Post-race
Kristoff was delighted with his win, saying: "I'm really happy to win, it's a really good feeling ..My family is here today, and it was a big dream and my big goal this season and I managed to do it." On his run-in to the finish line with Terpstra, he commented: "At the end, I came with Niki, and he didn't really want to work with me, but I understand that. In the end I could still beat him." Geraint Thomas was disappointed with his performance, tweeting
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, ...
after the race that he "just lacked the legs of last weekend", referring to his E3 Harelbeke victory.
The magazine ''Cycling Weekly
''Cycling Weekly'' is a British cycling magazine. It is published by Future and is devoted to the sport and pastime of cycling. It used to be affectionately referred to by British club cyclists as "The Comic". '' commented on the race by criticising the route as "more attritional ..than it is tactical", citing the lack of attacks and the teams' reluctance to send riders into break-aways. Reporter Stephen Puddicombe also criticised Niki Terpstra for not attacking Kristoff before the finish, writing: "Did Terpstra really believe he had any hope of winning the two-man sprint against one of the quickest finishers in the world?"
Results
References
External links
*
{{Tour of Flanders
Tour of Flanders
Tour of Flanders
The Tour of Flanders ( nl, Ronde van Vlaanderen), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders, it is part of the UCI World Tour and organi ...
Tour of Flanders
The Tour of Flanders ( nl, Ronde van Vlaanderen), also known as ''De Ronde'' (''"The Tour"''), is an annual road cycling race held in Belgium every spring. The most important cycling race in Flanders, it is part of the UCI World Tour and organi ...