The 2026 Renewi Tour takes place from Wednesday 19 August to Sunday 23 August, with five stages entirely in Belgium and another strong WorldTour field assembled for one of the most distinctive stage races of the late summer.
Defending champion Arnaud De Lie returns, while four-time overall winner Tim Wellens is back chasing a record-extending fifth title. The sprint field is particularly strong, with Jasper Philipsen, Tim Merlier, Jonathan Milan and Olav Kooij among the headline names on the provisional start list.
The route begins in Diest and finishes five days later in Leuven, with sprint opportunities mixed with the cobbles and short climbs around Geraardsbergen and a Classics-style final stage. Our Renewi Tour 2026 route guide covers all five days in detail, while the Beginner’s guide to the Renewi Tour 2026 explains how the race works and why such a wide range of riders can challenge for the overall victory.
Photo Credit: GettyRenewi Tour 2026 start list at a glance
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Race | Renewi Tour 2026 |
| Dates | 19-23 August 2026 |
| Classification | UCI WorldTour, 2.UWT |
| Number of stages | 5 |
| Start | Diest |
| Finish | Leuven |
| Teams | 22 |
| Riders per team | Up to 7 |
| Maximum field | 154 riders |
| Defending champion | Arnaud De Lie |
| Record winner | Tim Wellens, four victories |
Unlike some previous editions, there is no individual time trial in 2026. That places even greater emphasis on positioning, bonus seconds, crosswinds and the harder stages at Geraardsbergen and Leuven.
Renewi Tour 2026 full start list
The live start list below contains the latest published riders for the 2026 Renewi Tour.
Team selections can continue changing before Stage 1 through illness, injury and late replacements, so the FirstCycling list should be checked again as the race approaches rather than relying on a static list of more than 150 names.
Data powered by FirstCycling.com
Which teams are racing the Renewi Tour 2026?
The 22-team field contains all 18 UCI WorldTeams alongside four invited ProTeams.
UCI WorldTeams
- Alpecin-Premier Tech
- Bahrain Victorious
- Decathlon CMA CGM Team
- EF Education-EasyPost
- Groupama-FDJ United
- Lidl-Trek
- Lotto Intermarché
- Movistar Team
- Netcompany Ineos
- NSN Cycling Team
- Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe
- Soudal Quick-Step
- Team Jayco AlUla
- Team Picnic PostNL
- Team Visma | Lease a Bike
- UAE Team Emirates-XRG
- Uno-X Mobility
- XDS Astana Team
UCI ProTeams
- Pinarello-Q36.5 Pro Cycling Team
- Tudor Pro Cycling Team
- Team Flanders-Baloise
- Unibet Rose Rockets
The individual line-ups remain provisional until close to the race, so the embedded start list above is the best place to follow late substitutions.
Arnaud De Lie returns as defending champion
Arnaud De Lie won the 2025 Renewi Tour after a dramatic final stage in Leuven, overturning Mathieu van der Poel’s advantage to take the overall title.
His combination of sprint speed and Classics strength makes the race particularly well suited to him. With no time trial in 2026, the ability to collect bonus seconds while surviving the harder stages should once again be important.
For more on the race’s evolution through the Eneco Tour, BinckBank Tour and Benelux Tour eras, see ProCyclingUK’s brief history of the Renewi Tour.
Tim Wellens goes for a fifth overall victory
No rider has won the modern race more often than Tim Wellens.
The Belgian took the overall title in 2014, 2015, 2023 and 2024, giving him four victories across two very different periods of his career. His ability on short climbs and difficult Classics-style roads has repeatedly made the Renewi Tour one of the stage races best suited to his particular skill set.
The absence of a time trial does not necessarily hurt him. Stages 3 and 5 provide plenty of opportunities for Wellens and the other stronger Classics riders to create gaps or collect bonus seconds.
A huge sprint field heads to Belgium
The provisional start list contains an unusually deep collection of sprinters.
Jasper Philipsen, Tim Merlier, Jonathan Milan and Olav Kooij are among the headline names, creating the possibility of several direct meetings between the leading fast men of the 2026 season.
They will not have every stage their own way. Stage 2 from Blankenberge to Ardooie looks like the clearest conventional sprint opportunity, but exposed Belgian roads always leave open the possibility of crosswind action before the finish.
The harder days around Geraardsbergen and Leuven should produce a very different contest, with the detailed GC and stage contenders better dealt with separately from the start-list page.
Geraardsbergen should reveal the strongest GC riders
The most obvious overall-classification test comes on Stage 3 from Celles to Geraardsbergen.
The route takes the peloton onto terrain closely associated with the Flemish Classics, including the Muur van Geraardsbergen and Bosberg. The repeated short climbs should favour riders able to combine explosive power with strong positioning rather than traditional Grand Tour climbers.
For more on the roads themselves, our guide to cycling in Geraardsbergen and Pajottenland looks at the Muur and the surrounding network of short climbs and narrow Flemish roads.
The final stage around Leuven then gives the GC contenders another difficult day. If the gaps remain small, bonus seconds could keep the overall race open until the closing kilometres on Sunday.
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Photo Credit: Getty
Can the Renewi Tour 2026 start list change?
Yes. The rider list remains provisional until close to the opening stage.
Teams can make replacements because of illness, injury, recovery from previous races or changes to individual programmes. That is why the FirstCycling embed above is used instead of manually publishing every rider in the article.
The live list can continue reflecting those changes without leaving outdated names in the body of the page.
Renewi Tour 2026 stage schedule
| Stage | Date | Route |
|---|---|---|
| Stage 1 | Wednesday 19 August | Diest to Diest |
| Stage 2 | Thursday 20 August | Blankenberge to Ardooie |
| Stage 3 | Friday 21 August | Celles to Geraardsbergen |
| Stage 4 | Saturday 22 August | Riemst to Bilzen-Hoeselt |
| Stage 5 | Sunday 23 August | Leuven to Leuven |
The race opens with a rolling stage around Diest before the sprinters get their clearest chance in Ardooie. Geraardsbergen should provide the first major GC selection on Friday, while Sunday’s Leuven finale ensures there is no ceremonial final stage.
UK viewers can find the latest television schedules and streaming options in our guide to watching the Renewi Tour 2026 in the UK.
