Ronde van Drenthe () was an elite men's and women's professional

road bicycle racing Road bicycle racing is the cycle sport discipline of road cycling, held primarily on Road surface, paved roads. Road racing is the most popular professional form of bicycle racing, in terms of numbers of competitors, events and spectators. The ...

event held annually in the

Drenthe Drenthe () is a province of the Netherlands located in the northeastern part of the country. It is bordered by Overijssel to the south, Friesland to the west, Groningen to the north, and the German state of Lower Saxony to the east. As of Jan ...

, Netherlands and sanctioned by the

Royal Dutch Cycling Union The Royal Dutch Cycling Union or KNWU (in Dutch: ''Koninklijke Nederlandsche Wielren Unie'') is the national governing body of cycle racing in the Netherlands. The aim of the KNWU is to give adequate support for all types of cycling in the Netherl ...

. The women's event was part of the

UCI Women's World Tour The UCI Women's World Tour is the premier annual female elite road cycling tour. , the tour includes 27 events in Europe, Asia and Oceania – with one-day races such as Strade Bianche Donne and Paris–Roubaix Femmes, stage races such as Wo ...

, and the men's event was part of 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 The Union Cycliste Internationale (; UCI; ) is the world governing body for sports cycling and ove ...

. In 2024, organisers announced that the race had been cancelled, owing to increasing costs, regulations and lack of support from the police.

History

Men's event

The race was first held in 1960 as an amateur event. Since 2005, the men's event has been part of the

. It became a 1.HC race in 2017. Between 2010 and 2015,

Dwars door Drenthe Dwars door Drenthe () was an elite men's road bicycle racing event held annually in the Drenthe, Netherlands, and sanctioned by the Royal Dutch Cycling Union. It took place between 2010 and 2015. From 2010, the men's event was UCI 1.1 rated and ...

was held on the same weekend as the Ronde van Drenthe. In 2011, Ronde van Drenthe and Dwars door Drenthe were held as a combined stage race, with each day retaining its own branding. The events reverted to being separate events in 2012. In November 2023, organisers announced that the men's race would not be held from 2024 onwards. The women's event would continue. Organisers stated the cancellation was due to increasing costs, regulations and lack of support from the police. 2008 Ronde van Drenthe 1

Women's event

A women's event was first held in 1998 as Novilon Eurocup, a one-day race. Between 2003 and 2006, this was held as a three-day event. In 2007, these three stages were replaced by three one-day races - the Novilon Eurocup, Drenthe 8 of Dwingeloo and Ronde van Drenthe. In 2015, the Novilon Eurocup was held for the last time, and the Drenthe 8 became Drentse 8 van Westerveld. The first edition of Ronde van Drenthe in

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

was part of the

UCI Women's Road World Cup The UCI Women's Road Cycling World Cup was a season-long List of women's road bicycle races, road bicycle competition for women organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale between 1998 and 2015. This competition consisted of a series (which h ...

, and the race became part of the

in 2016. Dutch rider Lorena Wiebes won the event four times in a row from 2021 to 2024. In 2024, organisers announced that the women's race would not be held from 2025 onwards, thereby cancelling the event. Organisers stated the cancellation was due to increasing costs, regulations and lack of support from the police.

Route

The races used generally flat roads in the Drenthe region of the Netherlands, with the challenge being multiple ascents of the – a hill built on a

landfill site A landfill is a site for the disposal of waste materials. It is the oldest and most common form of waste disposal, although the systematic burial of waste with daily, intermediate and final covers only began in the 1940s. In the past, waste was ...

. The climb was 750m in length with an average gradient of 4.2% and a maximum gradient of 20%. Other difficulties were the ten cobbled sections on the route.

Men's past winners

Source

Women's past winners

Novilon Eurocup

Drentse 8 van Dwingeloo / Acht van Westerveld

Ronde van Drenthe

Source

References

External links

* {{UCI Women's World Tour Cycle races in the Netherlands UCI Women's Road World Cup UCI Europe Tour races Recurring sporting events established in 1960 1960 establishments in the Netherlands Recurring sporting events established in 1998 1998 establishments in the Netherlands Women's road bicycle races UCI Women's World Tour races