INFO WITH ONE DAY TO GO

April 22 ^nd 2025 - 17:19

• The 28th edition of La Flèche Wallonne Femmes will be held on Wednesday and the 140.7 km route includes the return of the Côte de Cherave in the final loop. It will be climbed twice, as will the Côte d'Ereffe and the Mur de Huy, where the finish will be reached at around 6pm, after the men's race. The race will be broadcast live from 4.35pm.
• With the world’s best climbers all present, the fight for victory promises to be particularly close. Undefeated in the Belgian event between 2015 and 2021, the returning Anna van der Breggen will be assessed by her team on Wednesday morning as she recovers from a recent illness.
• The three riders who succeeded van der Breggen as winners in her absence over the last three editions are again amongst the favourites for victory: Marta Cavalli, Demi Vollering and the defending champion Kasia Niewiadoma.

Cherave returns to increase difficulty on the approach to the Mur

Although slightly below the record distance of last year’s race (140.7 kilometers versus 146), the route increases in difficulty with the return of the Côte de Cherave (1.3 km at 8.1%), which was removed last year due to roadworks. This allows the formidable triumvirate to be reunited, along with the Côte d'Ereffe (2.1 km at 5%) and the Mur de Huy (1.3 km at 9.6%), which will all be encountered a second time during the 37.2 km final loop. "Having this difficulty so close to the Mur will have an impact," says race director Gilles Maignan. "Last year, there was a long, flat section after Ereffe. Now we have Cherave, which is not an easy climb. The weather will also make things harder. It is forecast for rain and (westerly) wind that will generally be against the riders. They'll have to fight all the way to stay in front, it's going to be exhausting." The last ascent of Cherave, the summit of which is located 5.7 km from the finish, could play into the hands of outsiders determined to create a scenario other than that of a straight forward final climb. "That’s especially the case as the Cherave descent, without being really tricky, is quite fast with two bends at the bottom," notes Maignan. "If it's wet, riders won't come back as easily as if it's dry."

Niewiadoma: "My goal is clear, I want to win"

Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon//SRAM zondacrypto) returns to her beloved Mur de Huy on Wednesday. Last year she broke a five-year winless streak there and ignited the momentum that four months later led her to triumph in the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, where she once again beat Demi Vollering. But since that historic Tour finale on Alpe d'Huez, success has once again been elusive. The 30-year-old star, however, underlines that she is ‘confident’ and ambitious: "My goal for La Flèche Wallonne is clear - to win. I’m feeling confident going into tomorrow’s race." Her season so far has not been easy after a heavy crash forced her to abandon at Strade Bianche. "I’ve now put that behind me," assures the rider who finished fourth in the Tour of Flanders, last of the quartet in a sprint won by Lotte Kopecky. Niewiadoma adds, "My final preparations for the Ardennes Classics went well. We’ve ridden the course for La Flèche Wallonne and I know the climbs well. I’m always excited for this time of the season as the races and terrains suit my strengths the best." Niewiadoma will be supported by the experienced Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig (second in La Flèche in 2020 and winner of a stage in the 2022 Tour de France Femmes in Epernay) and also by the young climbers Antonia Niedermaier (seventh in the UAE Tour) and Neve Bradbury (third in the Giro last year).

New team and a new approach for Vollering

Winner of the event in 2023 as part of her fabulous Ardennes treble and second last year, Demi Vollering arrives at the foot of the Mur in new colours with FDJ-Suez and with a new, more focused approach. The Dutch rider has skipped most of the cobbled races, such as the Tour of Flanders, which the former SD Worx-Protime leader had consistently contested over the past five seasons. A month has therefore passed since her last race (when she was fourth in Milano-Sanremo Donne) and the start of the Ardennes campaign. On Sunday at the Amstel Gold Race Ladies (20th) she dominated a group of favorites in a sprint. Is this enough to give her some extra freshness? “Ask me again after the Ardennes campaign,” smiles the winner of Strade Bianche Donne. “Then I will know how this new approach turned out. It's different, I had a good altitude training camp [on the slopes of the Teide volcano] with my teammates. The objectives are clear and my feelings are good.” Vollering is not the only rider with ambitions at FDJ-Suez: Frenchwomen Evita Muzic (fourth last year and fifth in 2023) and Juliette Labous (sixth in 2021) have also previously impressed at the top of the Mur de Huy.

SD Worx-Protime hoping for Van der Breggen recovery

SD Worx-Protime's plans have been disrupted in recent days by Anna van der Breggen's illness. After missing the Amstel Gold Race Ladies on Sunday the Dutchwoman is now recovering for La Flèche Wallonne Femmes. Having established herself as the absolute queen of the event (with seven victories between 2015 and 2021) before putting her career on hold and then resuming this season, her wellness to participate will be assessed by the team on Wednesday morning. Sports Director Gianpaolo Mondini, explains Van der Breggen’s status, saying “It's always crucial the night before the race and we will decide tomorrow morning, but we have good hopes. This morning we decided to come here for the recon and Anna said 'actually I don't need to recon, I did it so many times, I know all the corners’. For us it's really important to have her in the team, and she can explain what is an even better line to do on the last Mur.” On the potential for the team should van der Breggen remain unwell, Mondini comments, “I mean with Lotte (Kopecky) this is not her kind of course, for this kind of arrival, but she's improving a lot, especially in the climbs. We are expecting that (Elisa) Longo Borghini and then (Demi) Vollering they probably suit this kind of finish better, so we are expecting that their teams should control things. I would say for one of the few times in the season we are not the favourite team starting for the victory, so we're gonna take it as a good opportunity to get the answer about our form and how our riders are going.”

Longo Borghini arrives “happy and with a free mind”

Despite having finished on the podium four times, Elisa Longo Borghini (UAE Team ADQ) has never yet won La Flèche Wallonne Femmes. The Italian placed second in 2013, third in 2014, third in 2021 and third again last year, where Kasia Niewiadoma and Demi Vollering beat her. "In La Flèche Wallonne it’s all about waiting, which I really don’t like to do! You have to wait until the last climb of the Mur, but I also think that having the (Côte de) Cherave back can make the race even more aggressive. I hope not for a sprint, but it’s going to be very tough not to get there with five or six people. I looked a little bit around and there are strong riders and I think a reduced bunch will come to the end." Victim of a crash and concussion during the Tour of Flanders, the Italian champion admits that “it wasn't exactly the approach I was hoping for in the Ardennes. But you have to be ready for a plan B.” However, her victory on Friday at La Flèche Brabançonne gave her, “a lot of confidence and I felt good at the Amstel Gold Race (35th). We also proved that we have a great team. I'm happy and I'm approaching the next two races with a free mind.”

Kerbaol and EF Education-Oatly aim to "create movement"

Among the outsiders capable of putting their stamp on the race, Ashleigh Moolman (AG Insurance-Soudal Team) has unparalleled experience, with eleven top-six finishes in 14 participations, including her fifth place last year. Meanwhile Cedrine Kerbaol (EF Education-Oatly) will be competing in only her second La Flèche Wallonne Femmes, three years after a modest 69th place in 2022. But the French rider has since enhanced her status considerably, finishing sixth in last year's Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift, with a stage victory in Morteau. “I'm looking forward to competing in the Ardennes, and La Flèche is a truly special race,” says the rider who is expected to share the leader’s role in the team with Noemi Ruegg, third in Milan-San Remo Donne and winner of the Santos Tour Down Under. “The start of the season hasn't gone as hoped, and we have to respond. We will try to create movement ourselves and have fun in the race.”