Linda Riedmann won the first edition of the Altebra MuurClassic Women, sprinting to victory in Geraardsbergen after Lotto-Intermarché Ladies had shaped much of the race from the front.
The German rider beat Xaydée Van Sinaey of Fenix-Premier Tech Development Team, with Eline Jansen completing the podium for VolkerWessels Cycling Team. Katja Verkerk finished fourth, 2 seconds down, ahead of Anne Knijnenburg, Tess Moerman and Sandrine Tas.
It was a race built around repeated pressure rather than one single attack. Tas gave Lotto-Intermarché Ladies the early platform with a long move, Scarlett Souren briefly joined her, and the final ascent of the Muur helped create the seven-rider group that decided the race.
On the Vesten finish, Jansen opened the sprint from the front, but Riedmann came over the top to take the win. Van Sinaey also passed Jansen in the closing metres, but the home rider could not reach Riedmann before the line.
Tas opens the race for Lotto-Intermarché
The first edition of the women’s MuurClassic was built around a 114-kilometre route in Geraardsbergen, with the Muur and the Vesten finish giving the race its identity.
Lotto-Intermarché Ladies were visible early through Sandrine Tas, who created the first real separation without needing a dramatic attack. She simply opened a gap on the peloton and settled into a long solo effort, forcing the rest of the bunch to decide whether to chase early or let the race develop.
That move immediately gave Lotto-Intermarché a strong tactical position. Tas was alone out front, taking pressure away from her teammates and making other teams spend energy before the hardest parts of the local circuit.
On a course like this, that mattered. The Muur is not long, but it changes the rhythm of the race every time it appears. Riders have to fight for position before the climb, handle the cobbles, then recover quickly enough for the next section. Tas’ move meant the bunch had to go through that process with someone already up the road.
Souren joins after 40 kilometres
Tas finally gained company after around 40 kilometres, when Scarlett Souren bridged across.
The pair built their advantage to around a minute, giving the race its first proper breakaway. But the move was never completely secure. Souren began to struggle, first hanging on under pressure, then losing contact when the race hit the first ascent of the Muur van Geraardsbergen.
That left Tas alone again with 38 kilometres still to race.
It was a strong ride from the Lotto-Intermarché rider. She had already forced the peloton into a chase, then survived the first major pressure point better than her breakaway companion. Even though she would not go on to win, her work became the foundation of the team’s eventual victory.
Tas goes solo again on the Muur
Tas’ second spell alone gave the race its shape before the final selection.
Her advantage was not large enough to make the peloton panic, but it was enough to force movement behind. The bunch could no longer simply wait for the final sprint. Riders had to decide whether to bridge across, organise a chase or gamble that the repeated climbs would bring everything back together naturally.
That is where the course began to do its work. The Muur did not directly produce the winner, but it broke up the race and made the strongest riders respond. The climb demanded positioning, the cobbles punished hesitation, and the run off the top allowed fresh attacks to go clear.
Tas had given Lotto-Intermarché a rider up the road. Behind, Riedmann was still being carried towards the decisive phase.
Seven riders come together after the final Muur
The decisive front group formed after the final ascent of the Muur.
Tas was joined by Jansen, Knijnenburg, Van Sinaey, Verkerk and her Lotto-Intermarché teammate Riedmann. Moerman then also made it across, creating a seven-rider lead group with around 18 kilometres remaining.
That was the key moment of the race. Lotto-Intermarché now had two riders in the move, with Tas having spent much of the day in the break and Riedmann arriving fresher for the finish. Van Sinaey gave the local crowd a rider in the winning move, while Jansen, Knijnenburg, Verkerk and Moerman made the group strong enough to stay clear if they worked together.
Behind them, a sizeable chase group tried to respond. The numbers were there, but the organisation was not. That lack of cooperation gave the leaders enough room to continue towards Geraardsbergen and the Vesten finish.
Chasers close but cannot finish the job
The chase group came back strongly in the closing kilometres, but not cleanly enough to stop the leaders deciding the race.
That made the finale tense. The seven riders at the front had the advantage, but not enough to relax. Behind them, the larger group was suddenly closing quickly, raising the possibility that the race might come back together just before the line.
The pressure also affected the front group. By the time the race reached the final climb of the Vesten, the winning move had been reduced from seven riders to a sprint between five. The early work, the repeated climbs and the closing chase had all taken their toll.
This was not a controlled finish. It was a late, messy, hard-earned sprint, with the leaders still aware that the chasers were coming back fast.
Jansen opens the sprint
Jansen made the first decisive move in the sprint.
The Dutch rider drove hard from the front on the Vesten, trying to turn the finish into a long power effort rather than a short acceleration. It was a brave way to race the final metres. With the chase group closing and the front group reduced, waiting too long carried its own risk.
For a moment, it looked like that might be enough. Jansen had position, momentum and the commitment to launch before the others could hesitate.
But Riedmann had the stronger finish.
Riedmann comes over the top
Riedmann timed her sprint best.
The Lotto-Intermarché rider came off Jansen’s wheel, accelerated past the VolkerWessels rider and opened enough of a gap to secure the win. It was the finish Lotto-Intermarché had worked towards throughout the race: Tas had animated the day from distance, then Riedmann made the decisive selection after the final Muur and still had the speed to finish it off.
Van Sinaey also came past Jansen in the final metres, taking second place in front of a crowd that had a local rider to follow deep into the finale. But she could not reach Riedmann.
Jansen held on for third, rewarded for the effort that had made the sprint so difficult, but denied the win after launching from the front.
Van Sinaey gives the home crowd a podium
Van Sinaey’s second place was one of the strongest stories of the race.
The Belgian rider came from nearby Schendelbeke, making her podium more than just a strong result on the day. She was the local rider in the decisive move, present after the final Muur and still strong enough to pass Jansen in the uphill sprint on the Vesten.
There will still be frustration because victory was close. Van Sinaey had made the right group, survived the hardest part of the race and positioned herself for the finish. But Riedmann’s sprint was too strong.
Even so, second place in the first edition of the Altebra MuurClassic Women gives Van Sinaey a result that will stand out, especially on roads so close to home.
Jansen completes the podium after leading out the sprint
Jansen’s third place came after a committed final effort.
She did not wait for the race to happen around her. On the Vesten, with the chase group closing and the lead group reduced, she opened the sprint from the front and tried to hold it all the way to the line.
That made the finish hard for everyone else. It also left her exposed. Riedmann came past for the win, Van Sinaey also moved by for second, and Jansen had to settle for the final podium place.
Still, it was a strong ride. Jansen helped form the decisive group after the final Muur, stayed in contention through the final 18 kilometres and then backed herself in the sprint rather than waiting for someone else to launch.
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Photo Credit: Florian Frison
Lotto-Intermarché win it as a team
Riedmann’s victory was not just a late sprint win.
Lotto-Intermarché Ladies shaped the race from much earlier. Tas created the first meaningful move, went clear almost by riding away from the bunch, then survived alone again after Souren was dropped on the Muur. That forced the rest of the field to chase and set up the race-winning selection after the final ascent.
When the decisive group formed, Riedmann was there alongside Tas. That gave the team two cards in a seven-rider move and allowed Riedmann to reach the finish with enough left to sprint.
It was an effective way to race a first edition. Lotto-Intermarché did not wait for others to decide the race. They used Tas to make it hard, then Riedmann to finish it.
The first edition gets the finish it needed
The Altebra MuurClassic Women needed a race that felt worthy of Geraardsbergen.
It got one. The Muur broke the race apart, Tas gave the day a long solo storyline, the final climb produced the decisive front group, and the Vesten finish delivered a tense sprint just as the chasers threatened to come back.
Riedmann was the strongest finisher from the front group, but the race was won through more than one moment. Tas’ early move mattered. Souren’s bridge mattered. The final Muur mattered. The lack of cooperation behind the seven leaders mattered. Jansen’s long sprint mattered.
Riedmann finished the job, but Lotto-Intermarché had been writing the story of the race long before the final metres.
Altebra MuurClassic Women 2026 result
| Pos | Rider | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Linda Riedmann | Lotto-Intermarché Ladies | 2:49:18 |
| 2 | Xaydée Van Sinaey | Fenix-Premier Tech Development Team | +0:00 |
| 3 | Eline Jansen | VolkerWessels Cycling Team | +0:00 |
| 4 | Katja Verkerk | Minimax Cycling Team | +0:02 |
| 5 | Anne Knijnenburg | VolkerWessels Cycling Team | +0:02 |
| 6 | Tess Moerman | AG Insurance-Soudal Devo Team | +0:19 |
| 7 | Sandrine Tas | Lotto-Intermarché Ladies | +0:31 |
| 8 | Anna Vanderaerden | Fenix-Premier Tech Development Team | +0:44 |
| 9 | Floren Bolks | VolkerWessels Cycling Team | +0:44 |
| 10 | Evelien Vijn | VolkerWessels Cycling Team | +0:46 |
