Liège-Bastogne-Liège: route and favourites

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20
Apr

Challenge Pogacar-Van der Poel but not only

The Ardennes Triptych ends on Sunday 19 April 2024 with the Liège-Bastogne-Liège , a historic race that will take place on a 254.5 km long route. There are eleven cotes scheduled, short climbs but with challenging slopes that will have the task of making a selection.

Among the decisive points are the Col du Rosier (4.4 km at 5.9 percent gradient), the Redoute (1.6 km at 9.4%, the Cote de Forges (1.3 at 7.8 %) and the Cote de la Roche aux Faucons with its 1,300 meters of length at 11 percent average gradient. From here there will be 13 km to the finish on a slight slope and descent.

Absent Remco Evenepoel, winner of the last two editions, the challenge seems to be between two men: Tadej Pogacar , winner in 2021, and Mathieu Van der Poel , who has not achieved important results in Liège so far and who will have to compete with a decidedly superior opponent compared to those found along the roads of Flanders and Roubaix, classics won by the world champion himself.

Who could ruin the two's plans? There is no shortage of names: there is the Ineos duo formed by Thomas Pidcock and Egan Bernal , the winner of last Wednesday's Freccia-Vallone, Stephen Williams, the Belgian from Lotto Maxim Van Gils, the Danish from Trek Mattias Skjelmose (who retired due to hypothermia at Freccia), Ben Healy and Richard Carapaz of Ef, Kevin Vauquelin of Arkea, Benoit Cosnefroy of Decathlon Ag2R and Tiesj Benoot of Visma. The presence of Groupama with Valentin Madouas, David Gaudu and Romain Gregoire, and Bahrain with Santiago Buitrago, Wout Poels and Antonio Tiberi, who emerged well from the Tour of The Alps, was interesting.

Photo Sprint Cycling