There is a moment every year when the women’s peloton rolls out of Gent and the noise changes. The hum of early-season racing gives way to something sharper, heavier, more urgent. Cobbles replace smooth tarmac, positioning becomes survival, and the first rider over the Muur-Kapelmuur signals not just a race in motion but the true beginning of the spring. The Women’s Omloop het Nieuwsblad remains more than a one-day race from A to B. It is the starting point of the Spring Classics season.
The 2026 edition again starts in Gent and finishes in Ninove after 137.6 kilometres, with the familiar sequence of Flemish climbs and cobbled sectors shaping the decisive moves. While the route retains its identity, several tweaks subtly alter how the race may unfold. Zottegem and the Paddestraat are absent this year, while additional climbs, such as Tenbosse and Parikeberg, have been introduced in the run-up to Geraardsbergen. Whether those additions encourage earlier aggression or simply add fatigue before the traditional finale remains to be seen.
Photo Credit: GettyThe race begins with a wide arc through Laarne and Wetteren, then turns towards the Flemish Ardennes. The Lange Munte arrives early, after just over 37 kilometres, a long, exposed stretch that can already stretch the peloton if the wind is present. From the Edelareberg onwards, the course tightens, and the sequence of climbs and cobbled sectors follows in quick succession.
The Holleweg, Wolvenberg, Kerkgate, Jagerij and Molenberg combine rhythm changes with technical positioning. Haaghoek and Leberg deepen the fatigue, before Berendries and the new pairing of Tenbosse and Parikeberg offer potential launchpads for long-range moves. The final act is unchanged in spirit. The Muur-Kapelmuur, 475 metres at an average of 9.3 per cent with ramps approaching 20 per cent, demands both power and composure. The Bosberg follows quickly, with cobbles near the summit, before the run to Ninove decides whether the strongest rider or the cleverest tactician takes victory. If a small group survives the Bosberg together, the race can hinge on tactical patience. If the Muur splits the contenders cleanly, the winner is often already clear.
Previous Winners
2025
Lotte Claes
2024
Marianne Vos
2023
Lotte Kopecky
2026 Women’s Omloop het Nieuwsblad route
2026 Women’s Omloop het Nieuwsblad live TV coverage
Race Date: Saturday 28th February 2026
Live coverage is available in the UK via Discovery+/HBO Max, in Belgium via Sporza and in the Netherlands, coverage is available online via NOS.
Broadcast images are expected from approximately 15:10 GMT
2026 Women’s Omloop het Nieuwsblad startlist
2026 Women’s Omloop het Nieuwsblad contenders
A familiar Omloop puzzle sits with Demi Vollering, because she has the profile to win this race in more than one way, and her record backs it up with two podiums and three top 10s, plus 3rd place last year as the best of the rest behind the surprise duo out front. The lingering frustration is 2022, when a head-to-head with Annemiek van Vleuten was there to be turned into a defining win, and the sense remains that she should have come away with more from that duel. The best version of Vollering here is the one who treats Tenbosse, the Parikeberg, and then the Muur as a chain of pressure points, thinning the group before the final climbs rather than waiting for a sprint she may not control. That tactical strength is amplified at FDJ United-SUEZ, where Elise Chabbey is the rider who can punish hesitation if the favourites start watching each other, and the added horsepower of Franziska Koch, 22nd last year, gives Vollering another strong body for positioning and the long, hard kilometres where Omloop is often won before the final climbs even begin.
A reduced sprint is still the most common outcome, and that makes Lorena Wiebes a genuine contender rather than a simple sprinter’s pick. Two podiums and four top 10s show she can survive the race well enough to matter, not just arrive fresh on the line, and if she is still present after the Bosberg, the finishing speed changes the equation immediately. The other half of the SD Worx threat is that Lotte Kopecky can win this race from multiple scenarios, already proven by 1st in 2023 and 2nd in 2024. If the group is small, Kopecky’s ability to handle repeated climbs and still sprint becomes decisive, and if the group is larger, Wiebes becomes the problem nobody wants to solve in Ninove. SD Worx can race with the kind of freedom that forces other teams into mistakes, because they do not need the race to unfold one specific way.
Photo Credit: GettyA straightforward winning route exists when the finishing speed survives the final climbs, and that is exactly where Elisa Balsamo becomes dangerous. Two top 10s show she can manage the rhythm of Omloop without needing a perfectly controlled lead-out, and her ability to sprint after a hard day is the type of weapon that wins when the group is reduced but still large enough for a sprint. The depth at Lidl-Trek is what makes the team more than a single finish card. Shirin van Anrooij was 4th in her only edition in 2024, a result that immediately marks her out as someone who can make the decisive selection rather than follow it, and if she races Tenbosse or the Parikeberg aggressively, she can arrive at the Muur with fewer sprinters left. Anna Henderson has already placed 7th in 2022 and fits the profile of a rider who can profit when the finale becomes chaotic, while Margot Vanpachtenbeke adds another credible option after finishing 10th last year, the kind of result that often precedes a step forward when the race opens up.
The most likely pathway for Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney is to make the race too hard for the fastest finishers, because her Omloop record includes only one top 10, and a straight reduced sprint is rarely her best endgame. If the late sequence becomes stop-start and aggressive, that suits her ability to keep attacking and keep the group unsettled, especially when others are trying to save one effort for the Muur. The other intriguing card at Canyon SRAM is Zoe Backstedt, because cyclocross form translates well here through positioning, repeated efforts and comfort on rough roads, and her early 2026 road signs, including 3rd on the opening stage of the UAE Tour and a solid ride on Jebel Hafeet, suggest she can handle the intensity when the pace stays high for long periods. The important caveat is that this is not a race where her teammate, Chiara Consonni, should be expected to be in the hunt for the win.
Photo Credit: GettyA top-10 benchmark already exists for Ilse Pluimers, and that matters because Omloop often rewards riders who can stay calm through chaos and still finish strongly when the group is disorganised. The winning scenario for her is a selective day where the front group is big enough for a sprint, but too scrambled for the pure sprint trains to control. That set-up suits AG Insurance-Soudal well, because Letizia Borghesi has a realistic top-10 shout if she arrives at Ninove with the right group, and 18th in 2025 does not feel like her ceiling in a tougher, reduced finish. Shari Bossuyt is more of an outsider with 15th in 2023, pointing to the same limitation as always, the climbs are likely to be the hardest part of the job if she wants more than a placing, but she can still be present deep enough to influence how aggressive the finale becomes.
A consistent Omloop performer is Christina Schweinberger, and three straight top-15 finishes underline that she reads this race well and tends to end up in the right group when it matters. That makes her a natural anchor for Fenix-Premier Tech on a day where the winner may still come from a reduced sprint rather than a solo move. The temptation is obvious with Charlotte Kool because of her sprint ceiling, but the more realistic question is whether she makes the finale at all if the race is ridden hard over the late climbs. The other name to watch closely is Millie Couzens, because early 2026 form is already clear through 7th and 8th at Setmana Ciclista Valenciana, and if she is still there after the Bosberg, she becomes exactly the kind of rider who can turn good legs into a surprise result when others are running on fatigue and instinct.
A rider who has already shown she belongs at the sharp end here is Thalita de Jong, and 5th in 2024, followed by 12th in 2025, is the sort of consistency that suggests course fit rather than a one-off day. If the front group arrives tired and disorganised, she can be one of the most effective finishers simply because she has saved enough to deliver a clean sprint after a hard race. The outside improvement candidate at Human Powered Health is Lily Williams, 24th last year, but capable of moving up if the race becomes more selective and the sprint becomes a test of endurance rather than raw speed.
A hard, selective Omloop is what Quinty Ton needs, because her best result here, 7th in 2023, came from a scenario where the race was aggressive enough to bring the fight down to a smaller group. If it becomes a straightforward sprint, she is likely to be outgunned, but if the late climbs are raced as repeated accelerations, she becomes far more relevant as an attacker and late-move rider. The other Liv AlUla Jayco name who keeps hovering close enough to matter is Ruby Roseman-Gannon, with 12th, 15th and 17th across the last three editions. That sequence often signals a rider who is consistently doing the right things and is waiting for the edition where the race finally breaks in her favour.
Photo Credit: GettyA reduced sprint that still includes fast finishers is where Eleonora Gasparrini becomes dangerous, and 6th last year is a strong marker that she can survive the decisive climbs close enough to contest the finish. If she is still present in the front group after the Bosberg, she will do well in the final sprint. The other UAE Team ADQ rider who sits in that second tier of reliable contenders is Karlijn Swinkels, with 11th in both 2022 and 2023 and 14th in 2024, the kind of record that suggests she is often there when the final selection is made, even if she has not yet turned it into a big Omloop result.
An outsider angle exists when the favourites neutralise each other, and the sprint becomes messy, and that is where Alexis Magner still fits the story, even if the podium back in 2018 now feels like a different era. If the race collapses into a tired group arriving in Ninove with no clear lead-out, she is the sort of rider who can steal a result through experience and wheel choice. The more interesting EF Education-Oatly addition for 2026 is Cédrine Kerbaol, because she has never raced Omloop before but comes in off a 7th place in GC at Setmana Ciclista Valenciana, which hints at a rider capable of applying pressure on the climbs rather than simply surviving them.
Photo Credit: GettyA rider with the momentum to override “no history here” is Cat Ferguson, because the early 2026 wins mean she arrives with confidence that cannot be ignored. If she crests the key climbs in the front group, she is capable of winning from a reduced sprint, and that sort of threat changes how others race. The other Movistar storyline is Liane Lippert, whose Omloop record is not the obvious one to lean on, but whose 2026 form is hard to dismiss after winning the Vuelta CV Feminas and adding two other 2nd places already this season. If Lippert races Tenbosse and the Parikeberg aggressively, she can arrive at the Muur with fewer sprinters left in the group, which is the cleanest way to turn form into a real winning scenario here.
A genuine form swing makes Josie Nelson one of the more interesting wildcards on the start list, because her Omloop history is bleak, never higher than 78th, yet her early 2026 level in Australia has been a different story entirely, 2nd at the Cadel Evans Great Ocean Road Race and a stage at the Tour Down Under. If that version of Nelson turns up in Belgium, she becomes the sort of rider who can follow the right move over the late climbs and still finish strongly from a reduced group, even if Team Picnic PostNL are not expected to control the race.
If you are looking for outside bets with a real sprint finish, India Grangier and Alison Jackson make sense because both have the blend of power and speed that becomes valuable when the sprint is scrappy, and the group is tired. The best scenario for them is the classic Omloop stalemate, a late move is brought back, the group is small but not tiny, and riders launch from imperfect positions rather than clean lead-outs, the kind of finish where St Michel-Preference Home-Auber 93 can still land a result that looks bigger than the team’s control of the day.
Top 3 Prediction
⦿ Lorena Wiebes
⦿ Demi Vollering
⦿ Lotte Kopecky
