The Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 takes place on Saturday 29 August, with 19 teams set to line up for one of the final major Women’s WorldTour one-day races of the European season.
The race starts and finishes in Plouay and covers 172.5km, with the return of the Côte de Ty Marrec adding extra difficulty to the finale. That should suit a field containing several strong Classics riders, climbers and fast finishers rather than producing one obvious favourite.
Three-time defending champion Mischa Bredewold returns for Team SD Worx-Protime, while Elisa Balsamo, Kim Le Court, Liane Lippert, Noemi Rüegg, Cédrine Kerbaol, Niamh Fisher-Black, Karlijn Swinkels and Letizia Paternoster are among the other leading names on the provisional start list.
For a broader introduction to the race, ProCyclingUK’s beginner’s guide to Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 covers the route, race history and what makes Plouay such a distinctive one-day event.
Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 start list
Data powered by FirstCycling.com
The live start list above should update as teams make any final substitutions ahead of the race.
Teams racing Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026
The 19 teams currently due to start are:
- Team SD Worx-Protime
- FDJ United-Suez
- UAE Team L’IMAD
- Canyon SRAM
- Team Visma | Lease a Bike
- Lidl-Trek
- Fenix-Premier Tech
- EF Education-Oatly
- Movistar
- Liv AlUla Jayco
- Human Powered Health
- Uno-X Mobility
- Team Picnic PostNL
- LABORAL Kutxa-Euskadi
- VolkerWessels
- Cofidis
- Ma Petite Entreprise
- St-Michel-Preference Home-Auber 93
- Mayenne Monbana My Pie
The six-rider squads give the race a provisional field of 114 riders.
Biggest names on the Classic Lorient Agglomération start list
Bredewold is inevitably one of the main riders to watch after winning each of the last three editions. Her consistency in Plouay has been remarkable, but the harder 2026 finishing circuit may give her rivals a better opportunity to prevent another reduced sprint.
Lidl-Trek bring one of the strongest teams on paper. Elisa Balsamo gives them a proven fast finisher, while Niamh Fisher-Black, Anna Henderson and Loes Adegeest provide options if the race becomes harder before the finish.
Kim Le Court arrives for Fenix-Premier Tech after winning the Tour of Britain Women overall and should be particularly well suited to this type of race. She can handle repeated short climbs but still possesses enough speed to win from a reduced group.
Movistar’s Liane Lippert is another obvious contender. The repeated climbing and the return of Ty Marrec play directly towards her strengths, particularly if the race becomes selective rather than ending with a large group.
EF Education-Oatly also have considerable depth through Noemi Rüegg, Cédrine Kerbaol and Magdeleine Vallieres Mill, giving them several riders capable of attacking before the finish rather than waiting for a sprint.
Mischa Bredewold chases a fourth consecutive victory
Bredewold has dominated the recent history of the race.
The Dutch rider won in 2023, 2024 and 2025 and now returns with the opportunity to make it four consecutive victories in Plouay.
That run makes her the natural reference point for the rest of the field, although the route has changed enough to make another victory far from straightforward.
ProCyclingUK’s brief history of Classic Lorient Agglomération looks back at the evolution of the race and the riders who have shaped its modern era.
The harder finale means SD Worx-Protime may need to control attacks earlier than in recent editions, particularly from teams with several strong climbers.
Bredewold still has one of the best finishes among the riders capable of surviving the climbs, but the race may need to stay considerably more controlled for her than it did during parts of her previous winning streak.
Ty Marrec makes the 2026 start list particularly interesting
The return of the Côte de Ty Marrec is the defining change to this year’s race.
The climb has not featured in the decisive finale since 2019 and gives riders such as Lippert, Kerbaol, Fisher-Black and Rüegg a much clearer reason to attack before the finish.
The full route is analysed in ProCyclingUK’s Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 route guide.
The race contains close to 2,800 metres of climbing across the day, so the final circuit will arrive after several hours of attrition.
That could reduce the advantage normally held by the fastest riders.
Balsamo, Bredewold and Paternoster remain major threats if they survive, but the likes of Lippert, Le Court, Kerbaol, Rüegg and Fisher-Black should all be interested in making sure the race does not come down to a straightforward sprint.
UAE Team L’IMAD bring several different options
UAE Team L’IMAD have one of the most balanced line-ups in the race.
Karlijn Swinkels and Eleonora Gasparrini provide speed if a relatively large group reaches the finish, while Mavi García and Maëva Squiban give the team more aggressive options on the climbs.
That should allow UAE to respond to several different race scenarios rather than committing to one leader from the start.
Squiban is particularly interesting if the race opens up early. Her willingness to attack from distance could become valuable on a route where waiting for the final kilometre may favour the faster finishers.
Eline Jansen arrives after confirming her 2027 move
VolkerWessels start with Eline Jansen, who comes into the race only a day after it was confirmed that she will join Team SD Worx-Protime from 2027.
Jansen’s 2026 performances suggest this is exactly the sort of race where she can be competitive.
She has already finished fifth at Dwars door Vlaanderen and Omloop van het Hageland, seventh at La Flèche Brabançonne and eighth at Nokere Koerse this season.
Her resilience was also on display at the Tour de France Femmes, where she made the Stage 9 time cut by just five seconds.
The hilly Plouay circuit therefore gives her another opportunity to test herself against the strongest Women’s WorldTour riders before her move at the end of the year.
Kim Le Court carries strong form into Plouay
Le Court should attract particular attention after her overall victory at the Tour of Britain Women.
She won the decisive Great Orme stage before defending her advantage through the final two stages, demonstrating both climbing strength and consistency. ProCyclingUK covered her Stage 3 victory and move into the race lead before she secured the overall title in Royal Leamington Spa.
Classic Lorient Agglomération presents a different tactical challenge but suits many of the same qualities.
The race is long enough to reward endurance, selective enough to remove many pure sprinters and still leaves open the possibility of a reduced-group finish.
That makes Le Court one of the most complete options on the start list.
When is Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026?
The race takes place on Saturday 29 August 2026.
The neutralised start in Plouay is scheduled for 12:05 CEST, or 11:05 BST, with the official race start shortly afterwards.
The finish is expected at approximately 17:15 CEST / 16:15 BST, depending on the speed of the race.
UK viewers can find the full broadcast details in ProCyclingUK’s Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 live viewing and start time guide.
Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 race details
| Detail | Classic Lorient Agglomération 2026 |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday 29 August 2026 |
| Start | Plouay |
| Finish | Plouay |
| Distance | 172.5km |
| Race level | UCI Women’s WorldTour |
| Teams | 19 |
| Riders per team | 6 |
| Neutralised start | 11:05 BST |
| Expected finish | Around 16:15 BST |
| Defending champion | Mischa Bredewold |
Is the Classic Lorient Agglomération start list final?
The list remains subject to late changes.
Teams can make substitutions before the start because of illness, injury or other last-minute issues, so riders shown earlier in the week are not guaranteed to take the start on Saturday.
The FirstCycling embed above should reflect those changes as the final line-up becomes clear.
With Bredewold attempting to win for a fourth consecutive year, Balsamo providing one of the strongest sprint options and riders such as Le Court, Lippert, Rüegg and Kerbaol likely to welcome the harder route, the 2026 Classic Lorient Agglomération start list gives the race several credible ways to unfold.
