The Scheldeprijs is a
cycling race
Cycle sport is competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, cyclo-cross, mountain bike racing, track cycling, BMX, and cycle speedway. Non-racing cycling s ...
in
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
and the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
which starts in
Terneuzen
Terneuzen () is a city and municipality in the southwestern Netherlands, in the province of Zeeland, in the middle of Zeelandic Flanders. With almost 55,000 inhabitants, it is the most populous municipality of Zeeland.
History
First mentione ...
, crosses the
Scheldt
The Scheldt (french: Escaut ; nl, Schelde ) is a river that flows through northern France, western Belgium, and the southwestern part of Netherlands, the Netherlands, with its mouth at the North Sea. Its name is derived from an adjective corr ...
River, and finishes in
Schoten
Schoten () is a municipality located in Antwerp Province, Belgium. The municipality only comprises the town of Schoten proper. As of 1 January 2020 Schoten has a total population of 34,311. The total area is which gives a population density of ...
. Until 2018 it was held entirely in Belgium. The event, ranked as a
1.HC race on the
UCI Europe Tour
The UCI Continental Circuits are a series of road bicycle racing competitions which were introduced in 2005 by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) to expand cycling around the world. The five circuits (representing the continents of Africa, the ...
, features mostly sprinters on its roll of honour, as it is held on all-flat roads over roughly 200 kilometres.
First held in 1907, it is the oldest still-existing cycling event in
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
, notably six years older than 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 ...
''
monument race''. The race had its only interruptions during both World Wars and celebrated its 100th edition in 2012. German sprinter
Marcel Kittel
Marcel Kittel (born 11 May 1988) is a German former racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2011 and 2019 for the , and squads. As a junior, he specialised in time trials, even winning a bronze medal in the World Championships for cycl ...
holds the record with five wins.
Since 2021, a women's edition of Scheldeprijs is held on the same day as the men's race, starting and finishing in Schoten, approximately 136 kilometres in distance.
Lorena Wiebes
Lorena Wiebes (born 17 March 1999) is a Dutch racing cyclist, who currently rides for UCI Women's WorldTeam . She rode for in the women's team time trial event at the 2018 UCI Road World Championships. She won the gold medal in road cycling at ...
won the inaugural edition.
History
The first Scheldeprijs was organised by the Antwerp branch of the Belgian cycling federation (
BWB) on July 8, 1907 – making it the oldest cycling race in
Flanders
Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...
. In its early years it started and ended in
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, , finishing at the now demolished
Zurenborg
Zurenborg is an area in south-east Antwerp largely developed between 1894 and 1906 that features a high concentration of townhouses in Art Nouveau and other fin-de-siècle styles.Alex Elaut, ''Zurenborg Walk'', Antwerp: Toerisme Antwerpen, .d ...
velodrome. Later the start moved to
Merksem
Merksem (; former spelling: ''Merxem'') is a district of the municipality and city of Antwerp in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It has 44,808 inhabitants as of 2021.
History
The history of Merksem goes back to Gallo-Roman times. During that perio ...
and then
Deurne, on the outskirts of Antwerp. In 1996, the start moved back to the centre of Antwerp. The inaugural race in 1907 was won by Frenchman
Maurice Léturgie
Maurice Leturgie (8 November 1886 – 24 November 1959) was a French racing cyclist. In 1907, he won the inaugural edition of the Scheldeprijs one-day race. He also rode in three editions of the Tour de France
The Tour de France () is ...
. It would be 46 years before another non-Belgian – Dutchman
Hans Dekkers – triumphed in 1953.
From the 1980s until 2009, the race was held in mid-April on the Wednesday following
Paris–Roubaix
Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Monuments' or classics of the ...
. In 2010, when the Scheldeprijs was purchased by
Flanders Classics
Flanders Classics is an official cooperation among the organizers of the classic cycle races held in Flanders. It was founded in 2009 , the event swapped dates with
Gent–Wevelgem
Gent–Wevelgem, officially Gent–Wevelgem – In Flanders Fields, is a road cycling race in Belgium, held annually since 1934. It is one of the classic races part of the Flemish Cycling Week, run in late March on the last Sunday before the To ...
and has since been held on the Wednesday between 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 ...
and
Paris–Roubaix
Paris–Roubaix is a one-day professional bicycle road race in northern France, starting north of Paris and finishing in Roubaix, at the border with Belgium. It is one of cycling's oldest races, and is one of the 'Monuments' or classics of the ...
. It has formerly been known as ''Scheldeprijs Schoten'' and ''Scheldeprijs Vlaanderen''. Since 2010, the race is simply known as Scheldeprijs.
Prominent winners include
Eddy Merckx
Édouard Louis Joseph, Baron Merckx (, ; born 17 June 1945), better known as Eddy Merckx, is a Belgian former professional road and track bicycle racer who is among the most successful riders in the history of competitive cycling. His victorie ...
,
Rik Van Looy
Henri "Rik" Van Looy (born 20 December 1933 in Grobbendonk) is a Belgian former professional cycle sport, cyclist of the post-World War II, war period, nicknamed the ''King of the Classics'' or ''Emperor of Herentals'' (after the small Belgian ...
,
Mario Cipollini
Mario Cipollini (; born 22 March 1967), often abbreviated to "Cipo", is a retired Italian professional road cyclist most noted for his sprinting ability, the longevity of his dominance (his first pro win came in 1988, his last in 2005; 170 p ...
,
Freddy Maertens
Freddy Maertens (born 13 February 1952) is a Belgian former professional racing cyclist who was twice world road race champion. His career coincided with the best years of another Belgian rider, Eddy Merckx, and supporters and reporters were sp ...
,
Roger De Vlaeminck
Roger De Vlaeminck (; born 24 August 1947) is a Belgian former professional racing cyclist. He was described by Rik Van Looy as "The most talented and the only real classics rider of his generation". Nicknamed “The Gypsy” because he was bo ...
,
Erik Zabel
Erik Zabel (; born 7 July 1970) is a German former professional road bicycle racer who raced most of his career with Telekom. With 152 professional wins and 211 wins in his career, he is considered by some to be one of the greatest German cycl ...
,
Briek Schotte
Alberic "Briek" Schotte (born Kanegem, West Flanders, 7 September 1919 – died Kortrijk, 4 April 2004) was a Belgian professional road racing cyclist, one of the champions of the 1940s and 1950s. His stamina earned him the nickname "Iron B ...
,
Stan Ockers
Constant ("Stan") Ockers (3 February 1920 in Borgerhout – 1 October 1956 in Antwerp) was a Belgian professional racing cyclist.
He was runner-up in the Tour de France in 1950 and 1952, and the best sprinter in that race in 1955 and 1956. ...
,
Georges Ronsse
Georges Ronsse (4 March 1906, Antwerp - 4 July 1969, Berchem) was a two-time national cyclo-cross and two-time world champion road bicycle racer from Belgium, who raced between 1926 and 1938.
In addition to his several national and world ch ...
,
Mark Cavendish
Mark Simon Cavendish (born 21 May 1985) is a Isle of Man, Manx professional Road bicycle racing, road racing cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . As a Track cycling, track cyclist he specialises in the Madison (cycling), madison, po ...
, and
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 ...
. German sprinter
Marcel Kittel
Marcel Kittel (born 11 May 1988) is a German former racing cyclist, who rode professionally between 2011 and 2019 for the , and squads. As a junior, he specialised in time trials, even winning a bronze medal in the World Championships for cycl ...
holds the record for most wins with five victories between 2012 and 2017. Belgian
classics specialist Johan Museeuw
Johan Museeuw (born 13 October 1965) is a retired Belgian professional road racing cyclist who was a professional from 1988 until 2004. Nicknamed ''The Lion of Flanders'', he was particularly successful in the cobbled classics of Flanders and No ...
, who finished second in 1992 and 1997, chose the 2004 event as his final race, saying, “I could have retired after Paris–Roubaix but I felt it important that my last race should be in Belgium. The Scheldeprijs is a great race and I especially love the start on Antwerp's market place.”
Route
The current route, starting with the 2018 edition, rolls out from Terneuzen, then passes through the
Western Scheldt Tunnel
Western Scheldt Tunnel ( nl, Westerscheldetunnel, Westerscheldetunnel) is a tunnel in the Netherlands that carries highway N62 under the Western Scheldt estuary between Ellewoutsdijk and Terneuzen. It is the longest tunnel for highway traffic in ...
before racing starts near
Ellewoutsdijk. It takes a 129.8 kilometre tour of the islands of
Walcheren
Walcheren () is a region and former island in the Dutch province of Zeeland at the mouth of the Scheldt estuary. It lies between the Eastern Scheldt in the north and the Western Scheldt in the south and is roughly the shape of a rhombus. The two ...
,
North
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography.
Etymology
T ...
and
South Beveland
Zuid-Beveland (; "South Beveland") is part of the province of Zeeland in the Netherlands north of the Western Scheldt and south of the Eastern Scheldt.
Topography
It is a former island, now peninsula, crossed by the Canal through Zuid-Bevela ...
in the province of
Zeeland
, nl, Ik worstel en kom boven("I struggle and emerge")
, anthem = "Zeeuws volkslied"("Zeelandic Anthem")
, image_map = Zeeland in the Netherlands.svg
, map_alt =
, m ...
in the Netherlands before crossing the border into Belgium, taking three laps on a local circuit and finishing at Churchilllaan in Schoten.
The previous race course consisted of one 155 kilometres lap in the countryside of
Antwerp province
)
, native_name_lang = nl
, settlement_type = Province of Belgium
, image_flag = Flag of Antwerp.svg
, flag_size =
, image_shield = Wapen van de provincie Antwerpen.svg
, shield_size ...
followed by three smaller laps of 15 kilometres in and around
Schoten
Schoten () is a municipality located in Antwerp Province, Belgium. The municipality only comprises the town of Schoten proper. As of 1 January 2020 Schoten has a total population of 34,311. The total area is which gives a population density of ...
. That route included seven cobbled sections varying between 1300 and 3000 metres. The race had a neutralised start on the banks of the
River Schelde in the centre of Antwerp at the
Grote Markt outside the
City Hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
. Racing begins in Schoten, a few kilometres north east. The finish was outside Schoten town hall.
Due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
, the 2020 edition was postponed from the spring to 14 October, and a revised route of 10 laps around Schoten planned, remaining entirely in Belgian territory.
Men's Winners
The following cyclists have won the race:
Multiple winners
Wins per country
Women's Winners
Wins per country
References
External links
*
{{Classic cycle races
Cycle races in Belgium
UCI Europe Tour races
Recurring sporting events established in 1907
1907 establishments in Belgium
Annual sporting events in Belgium
Classic cycle races
Spring (season) events in Belgium
Women's road bicycle races