Lorena Wiebes returns to La Choralis Fourmies Féminine on Sunday 13 September as the clear rider to beat, but the defending champion faces considerably more sprint depth than she did when she dominated the finish here 12 months ago.
Charlotte Kool has already beaten Nienke Veenhoven and Elisa Balsamo to win Scheldeprijs this season, Veenhoven arrives after a hat-trick of stage victories at the Baloise Ladies Tour, while Lara Gillespie was runner-up to Wiebes in Fourmies last year and again finished immediately behind her at the Tour of Britain Women in August. Former winner Silvia Zanardi, Gladys Verhulst-Wild and Amalie Dideriksen add further options if the 126.4km race reaches a sizeable group finish.
There is also enough strength outside the pure sprinters to make control uncomfortable. Pfeiffer Georgi won this race in 2021, Eline Jansen has every reason to attack rather than wait for Wiebes, and Kathrin Schweinberger has the combination of endurance and speed to profit if the additional Avesnes-sur-Helpe loop makes the race more selective.
The La Choralis Fourmies Féminine 2026 route guide explains the most important change. The race remains broadly favourable to fast finishers, but an extended middle section through Avesnes-sur-Helpe and Sains-du-Nord gives the attacking teams more terrain to weaken the sprint trains before the return to Fourmies.
That distinction matters. Dropping Wiebes completely is difficult. Making sure she reaches the final kilometres without the level of control SD Worx-Protime enjoyed in 2025 is a much more realistic objective.
Lorena Wiebes is still the clear favourite
There is no convincing reason to put anybody ahead of Wiebes.
She won the 2025 La Choralis Fourmies Féminine after a race in which repeated attacks failed to dislodge SD Worx-Protime’s control. Once the peloton reached Fourmies together, Wiebes beat Gillespie and Verhulst-Wild decisively.
Her 2026 season has made the obvious counter-tactic even harder to execute.
Wiebes won four of the five stages at the Tour of Britain Women, including the demanding fourth stage into Hay-on-Wye. That day contained repeated climbing and attacks which looked capable of removing her before the finish, but she survived and still had enough speed to win the reduced sprint.
Fourmies is not as hard as that stage.
The additional Avesnois loop should create more fatigue, but there is no single climb where a team can simply set a sustained pace and expect Wiebes to disappear. Rivals need repeated attacks, crosswind pressure or enough tactical disorder to force SD Worx-Protime to spend riders much earlier than they would like.
The defending champion also has a strong support group. Femke Markus, Femke Gerritse, Marie Schreiber, Lisa van Belle and Julia Kopecky give SD Worx-Protime enough resources to chase attacks while keeping riders available for the approach to Fourmies.
That does not make the result inevitable. It does mean everyone else needs something to go wrong with Wiebes’ preferred race.
If she enters the final kilometre with a functioning lead-out, she remains the most likely winner.
Charlotte Kool has the speed to challenge Wiebes directly
Kool is the most obvious rider who can approach a bunch sprint without first needing Wiebes to be removed.
Her 2026 season has provided enough evidence. She finally won Scheldeprijs Women in April, beating Veenhoven and Balsamo after a chaotic finale, and followed that with victory at Veenendaal-Veenendaal in May.
Those are races where outright sprint speed matters, and Fourmies remains close enough to that category for Kool to be a genuine first-line favourite.
The difficulty is that racing Wiebes is not simply a matter of comparing maximum speed. Positioning into the final corner, the quality of the lead-out and who has been forced to chase during the previous 30km all matter.
Fenix-Premier Tech have enough strength to avoid leaving Kool isolated. Julie De Wilde, Evy Kuijpers, Mylène de Zoete, Marthe Truyen and Millie Couzens give the team several riders capable of working through the rolling middle section and helping to organise the return towards Fourmies.
Kool’s presence also changes how much work SD Worx-Protime can expect other sprint teams to contribute. Fenix want the race brought back together, but they have little reason to spend everything helping Wiebes arrive with a complete train.
That tension gives the attackers their best opportunity.
Photo Credit: GettyLara Gillespie has closed the gap to the established sprinters
Gillespie finished second here last season. Her 2026 results suggest that was not an isolated performance.
She won the Argenta Classic in Deurne in July and has continued producing results against WorldTour opposition. Most recently, she finished second to Wiebes on the final stage of the Tour of Britain Women in Royal Leamington Spa.
That race is useful context for Fourmies.
Wiebes was still clearly faster, but Gillespie again put herself ahead of riders such as Chiara Consonni after a selective stage. The Irish champion is increasingly reliable at surviving enough difficulty to still contest the finish rather than needing the easiest possible route into a sprint.
UAE Team L’IMAD also have little reason to reproduce the 2025 race exactly.
Gillespie knows what happens if Wiebes receives an orderly lead-out into the final corner. UAE can afford to race more aggressively through the Avesnois and force SD Worx-Protime to chase before switching attention back to their sprinter.
The ideal scenario for Gillespie is probably a reduced and disorganised peloton rather than a small breakaway. Remove half the sprint trains, keep Wiebes under pressure and suddenly the final kilometre becomes far less predictable.
She still needs to find more speed than she had against Wiebes at the Tour of Britain, but her route to victory is credible.
Nienke Veenhoven arrives after a major step forward
Veenhoven’s 2026 season has established her as much more than a rider collecting occasional sprint placings.
She finished second to Kool at Scheldeprijs and third at Veenendaal-Veenendaal before producing an outstanding Baloise Ladies Tour. Veenhoven won three stages there, completing her hat-trick on the final stage in Mechelen.
Her record at Fourmies is also improving. She finished eighth in 2024 and fourth last season, just outside the podium behind Wiebes, Gillespie and Verhulst-Wild.
That progression makes Sunday a particularly interesting test.
Veenhoven has already shown she can beat Kool this season. She has not yet established the same evidence against Wiebes, and SD Worx-Protime’s lead-out remains stronger than Visma’s on paper.
Team Visma | Lease a Bike therefore have reason to let others carry more of the control. Daniek Hengeveld and Maud Oudeman can help Veenhoven through the race, but there is little benefit in using the entire team to chase every move while SD Worx and Fenix save their riders.
A messy final suits Veenhoven more than it did two years ago. She now has enough confidence and winning experience to take advantage if the recognised sprint order breaks down.
Silvia Zanardi knows exactly how to win in Fourmies
Zanardi should not be pushed down the contenders list simply because the 2026 sprint field is stronger.
She won here in 2024 after Human Powered Health committed to catching a dangerous late break containing Femke de Vries, Marta Lach and Emma Norsgaard. Once the move was brought back with around three kilometres remaining, Zanardi finished the job ahead of Cat Ferguson and Martina Alzini.
The 2024 race report remains a useful guide to her chances.
Zanardi can survive the rolling roads and still produce a strong sprint after more aggressive racing. That is important because trying to beat Wiebes from a completely controlled full bunch is a poor percentage play.
Human Powered Health can also use Kathrin Schweinberger before the finish rather than putting every rider into a straightforward lead-out.
Zanardi’s preferred race should be selective enough to remove some of Wiebes’ support but not so selective that the strongest Classics riders disappear up the road.
If 20 or 30 riders come back into Fourmies together, she becomes far more dangerous than in a full peloton.
Gladys Verhulst-Wild has both course form and a win in 2026
Verhulst-Wild completed last year’s podium and returns with another reason to believe she can contend.
The French rider ended a three-year wait for victory at the Trofee Maarten Wynants in May, leading an AG Insurance-Soudal one-two from a large bunch sprint.
That result does not suddenly put her on the same pure-speed level as Wiebes or Kool, but Fourmies is not decided only by laboratory sprint numbers.
Verhulst-Wild is experienced at negotiating French and Belgian one-day races where the bunch repeatedly stretches, reforms and changes shape. She does not require a long, perfectly organised lead-out to put herself into position.
That makes her particularly interesting if the new middle section does its job.
AG Insurance-Soudal can afford to let SD Worx and Fenix absorb the majority of the chase, keeping Verhulst-Wild fresher for the final kilometres. She was able to convert exactly that sort of race into third last year.
A podium repeat is entirely realistic. To win, she probably needs the finale to become significantly less orderly than it did in 2025.
Pfeiffer Georgi has no reason to wait for the sprint
Georgi’s route to victory looks completely different.
The British rider won Fourmies in 2021 and remains one of the strongest one-day racers in the field, but there is almost no reason for Team Picnic PostNL to bring Wiebes, Kool and Gillespie to a conventional finish.
Georgi needs to use the terrain.
The extended section around Avesnes-sur-Helpe and Sains-du-Nord provides more opportunity to make the race costly before the sprint teams can settle into their familiar roles. She can attack herself, follow a dangerous group or force other teams to use riders who would otherwise be saved for the finale.
She does not necessarily need to arrive alone.
Georgi retains enough finishing speed to beat most riders from a small break, particularly after a hard race. That gives her more tactical freedom than a pure attacker who knows the move must stay clear all the way to the line.
Her move to UAE Team L’IMAD from 2027 has already been confirmed, but Fourmies is another late-season chance to deliver for Picnic PostNL before ending the only professional team relationship she has known.
The winning formula is obvious: make sure the sprint teams never become comfortable.
Kathrin Schweinberger gives Human Powered Health an attacking card
Schweinberger makes Human Powered Health particularly awkward because the team do not need to commit solely to Zanardi.
She finished fifth in Fourmies last season and has already shown her speed again in 2026, taking second behind Kool at Veenendaal-Veenendaal.
Schweinberger is also more willing to race aggressively than a conventional sprinter.
That gives Human Powered Health a simple tactical split. Zanardi can remain protected while Schweinberger follows or initiates moves through the rolling middle of the race. If something strong escapes, they are represented. If everything returns, they still have the 2024 winner for the sprint.
Schweinberger becomes particularly dangerous from a group of six to 12 riders where nobody has an overwhelming finishing advantage.
If the race reaches Fourmies with an intact peloton, Zanardi is probably the better card. Before then, Schweinberger may be the more important rider.
Amalie Dideriksen is built for an imperfect sprint
Dideriksen’s 2026 season has been one of her strongest on the road for several years.
She returned to winning at the Région Pays de la Loire Tour-Féminin and regained the Danish road title, results which helped earn her a two-year move to Human Powered Health from 2027.
Before that move, Cofidis still have an experienced finisher perfectly suited to a race such as Fourmies.
Dideriksen is unlikely to beat Wiebes in a textbook lead-out sprint. Her strength is that she remains competitive when the textbook disappears.
The former world champion reads races well, can survive rolling terrain and has years of track experience to call on when positioning becomes compressed and chaotic. She can also sprint without requiring a six-rider train to deliver her into the final 200 metres.
Valentine Fortin and Martina Alzini give Cofidis additional speed, allowing Dideriksen to approach the race without the entire team becoming dependent on one scenario.
A hard but ultimately regrouping race suits her particularly well.
Eline Jansen should attack rather than sprint against the specialists
Jansen is one of the clearest candidates to try to prevent the expected finish.
Her 2026 season has continued a rapid progression which has already earned her a move to SD Worx-Protime for 2027. She is currently fourth in the Coupe de France Femmes Professionnelles standings, only six points behind leader Célia Gery going into Sunday’s final round.
That creates an additional reason to race for a result rather than simply accept a supporting role in a sprint-dominated race.
Jansen finished 14th in Fourmies last year. Her chances of improving substantially do not come from trying to out-sprint Wiebes and Kool.
VolkerWessels also have Scarlett Souren and Lonneke Uneken for faster finishes, freeing Jansen to concentrate on the moves.
The most attractive moment should come after the race has spent its first wave of energy through the extended middle section. If SD Worx, Fenix and Visma have already used riders keeping the race together, another attack on the return towards Fourmies becomes more expensive to chase.
Jansen is strong enough to make that move worth respecting.
Valentine Fortin offers Cofidis another route
Fortin should not be reduced to a lead-out role for Dideriksen.
She has repeatedly shown enough speed to contest reduced finishes and finished eighth in Fourmies last year. Her strengths sit between those of a pure sprinter and an outright attacker, which can become valuable if the additional climbing removes some of the fastest riders.
Cofidis therefore have options rather than a fixed hierarchy.
A large finish points towards Dideriksen. A smaller, harder race gives Fortin more opportunity to race for herself.
That flexibility matters because committing too early to chasing for one rider is exactly what the stronger sprint teams want the rest of the field to do.
Photo Credit: GettyAlison Jackson needs the race to stay unsettled
Jackson is another rider who should have no interest in a conventional sprint.
Her best one-day results have repeatedly come from recognising the moment when stronger teams hesitate, committing to the move and forcing others to decide who will chase.
Fourmies offers that possibility even though the terrain is much less severe than Paris-Roubaix.
The extra Avesnois loop creates fatigue, but the more interesting opportunities may come afterwards. Once the peloton turns back towards Fourmies, the principal sprint teams will begin thinking about preserving riders for the finale.
That is when somebody such as Jackson can exploit uncertainty.
St Michel-Preference Home-Auber93 have no obligation to contribute to the control for Wiebes or Kool. Their better race is one where Jackson is already ahead while those teams argue about who should bring her back.
What needs to happen to beat Wiebes?
The history of Fourmies provides both sides of the answer.
In 2024, attacks were eventually controlled and Zanardi won the sprint. In 2025, SD Worx-Protime kept Wiebes protected, the race came back together and the result was even more decisive.
The contrasting example came in 2023.
Marta Lach attacked with three laps remaining and held off the peloton by a single second. The race report from Lach’s Fourmies victory remains the best tactical reference for anybody trying to beat the sprinters.
Lach did not find a decisive climb. She exploited hesitation.
That is likely to be just as important in 2026.
Georgi, Jansen and Jackson do not need to ride Wiebes off their wheels on the hardest road of the day. They need to make SD Worx-Protime chase once, then again, then force them to decide whether another move deserves another rider.
Kool’s presence complicates matters further. Fenix-Premier Tech also want a sprint, but neither sprint team wants to exhaust itself while delivering the other’s leader to the finish.
The attackers need to turn that conflict into road between themselves and the peloton.
Who is the favourite to win La Choralis Fourmies Féminine 2026?
Wiebes remains comfortably the first choice.
Her 2025 victory demonstrated how well Fourmies suits her, and the 2026 Tour of Britain showed that adding more rolling terrain is not necessarily enough to remove her. She is climbing better, remains the fastest finisher in the race and has a team capable of controlling the decisive kilometres.
Kool is the strongest direct challenger. Her Scheldeprijs and Veenendaal victories confirm that her top-end speed remains capable of winning major sprints, and Fourmies is one of the better late-season opportunities for her.
Gillespie and Veenhoven form the next tier. Both have won in 2026, both have repeatedly finished close to the biggest sprint names and both already have strong Fourmies results.
Zanardi and Verhulst-Wild have particularly compelling course history, while Dideriksen becomes more dangerous if the race is hard enough to reduce the bunch without breaking it completely.
Georgi, Jansen, Schweinberger and Jackson need something different. Their chances rise each time the race becomes less organised.
The full La Choralis Fourmies Féminine 2026 start list shows the problem facing anyone hoping for another comfortable sprint. There are enough fast riders that several teams will want a regrouping, but there are also enough strong attackers to make controlling every move expensive.
The history of La Choralis Fourmies Féminine has already produced both outcomes.
If control wins, Wiebes is the favourite to become the race’s first two-time champion.
If control breaks, this field is deep enough to make sure she has far more company in the fight for victory than she did a year ago.
