Jasper Philipsen is the fastest in Wevelgem after an exciting finale
Jasper Philipsen has claimed victory in Wevelgem after a blistering finale. The Belgian sprinter proved strongest in a bunch sprint through the streets of Wevelgem. After the duo of Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert was caught under the flamme rouge and a late attack by Alec Segaert was neutralized, it was the sprinters' turn to shine. Philipsen was the fastest, adding the West Flemish classic to his palmares. Tobias Lund Andresen and Christophe Laporte completed the podium.
The first edition of "In Flanders Fields - From Middelkerke to Wevelgem" got off to a flying start. No less than 45 km were covered in the first hour of racing. An early breakaway formed with Johansen (UAE Team Emirates XRG), Vercouillie (Team Flanders-Baloise), Charret (Cofidis), and Mouris (Unibet Rose Rockets). They were joined 220 km from the finish by Biesterbos (Team Picnic PostNL), Hesters (Team Flanders-Baloise), De Bondt (Decathlon CMA CGM Team), and De Vries (Unibet Rose Rockets), creating a lead group of eight.
The peloton allowed the gap to grow to over five minutes, with Alpecin-Deceuninck keeping the breakaway under control. As often happens, the passage through De Moeren caused nervousness. A crash followed, with Kielich (Team Visma | Lease a Bike), Kanter (Astana Qazaqstan Team), and Rex (Soudal-Quick-Step) among the most notable victims.
While the wind in De Moeren wasn't strong enough to split the race, the peloton eventually broke into two parts shortly after. Big names like Van Aert (Team Visma | Lease a Bike), Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck), and De Lie (Lotto Dstny) were alert at the front. Heading towards the day's first climbs—the Scherpenberg and Baneberg—the situation calmed down, and the two main groups merged.
Approaching the Plugstreets, the seven remaining escapees held a 40-second lead. On the first gravel section, Stuyven (Lidl-Trek) tested the legs, but no major splits occurred. (Read more below the photo)
The real explosion followed on the second ascent of the Kemmelberg. With 57 km to go, Van Aert unleashed his power, with only Van der Poel and Vermeersch (UAE Team Emirates XRG) able to react. The trio quickly reached the early break, forming a new leading group including De Bondt, Mouris, De Vries, and Biesterbos.
On the penultimate climb of the day, the Baneberg, Johansen was the first of the early escapees to be dropped, leaving seven leaders for the final phase. On the Kemmelberg Ossuaire, Van der Poel put down a searing pace. The leading group shattered; only Van Aert was able to answer the acceleration. Over the top, the two remained as sole leaders. Vermeersch followed ten seconds behind. With 32 km to go, the duo seemed destined for the finish line in Wevelgem.
The finale turned into a top-tier spectacle. Vermeersch was caught before the final 10 km, and the lead of Van Aert and Van der Poel began to shrink rapidly under pressure from a chasing peloton. With 4 km to go, Segaert (Bahrain Victorious) jumped from the pack to join the front, meaning three leaders entered the final 3 km with a minimal lead.
In the background, Ganna (INEOS Grenadiers) took the lead to close the gap for his teammate Watson (INEOS Grenadiers). As the peloton caught the three under the red flag, Segaert launched one last attack. It was only in the final hundreds of meters that Segaert was finally caught by the bunch. A group sprint followed, in which Philipsen proved to be the fastest ahead of Lund Andresen (Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale Team) and Christophe Laporte (Team Visma | Lease a Bike).
