The riders set off from a new starting venue, Kortrijk, but that’s essentially the only change. The route of Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne is virtually a carbon copy of last year’s edition, which was won by Tiesj Benoot. The winner opened a flurry of attacks inside the last 13 kilometres before he rode away from his fellow-attackers – Tim Wellens, Matej Mohoric, Nathan Van Hooydonck, Taco van der Hoorn – just after the flamme rouge.
Following the start on the Grote Markt in Kortrijk the first hill, Tiegemberg, appears after 17 kilometres. That’s more or less the interval within which new climbs are tackled in the first part of the race. The riders continue to Volkegemberg, Lepelstraat and Bossenaarstraat, after which racing intensifies.
Berg Ten Houte appears only 3 kilometres after the Bossenaarstraat climb before the race enters French speaking territory. The riders penetrate the Pays des Collines – or, Land of the Hills – and tackle La Houppe, Hameau des Papins, Le Bourliquet and Mont Saint-Laurent within 22 kilometres. Not only are the intervals between the climbs shortened, the gradients become more daunting, often exceeding 10%.
Back in Dutch speaking Belgium the terrain does not change that much and the Kruisberg, Hotond, Côte de Trieu and Kluisberg are tackled within a 16 kilometres frame. The Kluisberg is the last uphill test of the day and it is crested with roughly 61 kilometres of racing ahead.
Big question at this point: where are the fast men? Chances are that they have been dropped in the hilly zone. Obviously, the riders at the front will be motivated to keep the pace high to thwart as regroupment.
The last hour of Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne usually turns out to be a fascinating display of cat and mouse with one group chasing the other at a ferocious pace. Strong winds could amplify the tension to the extreme.
‘KBK’, as the race is often abbreviated, has been named a sprint Classic, but the race does not always pan out that way. In fact, Ties Benoot (2023), Kasper Asgreen (2020), Bob Jungels (2019) and Jasper Stuyven (2016) won the race solo. Fabio Jakobsen (2022) and Mads Pedersen (2021) were the last sprinters to take the spoils., often exceeding 10%.
Ride the route yourself? Download GPX Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne.
Other interesting reads: race results/report and start list 2024 Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne.
Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne 2024: routes, profiles & more
Click on the images to zoom
