The first 55 kilometres are the calm before the storm. The riders roll over flat roads towards the first cobbles, which appear in Doorn. Roughly 10 kilometres later, the first climb rears its head: the Edelareberg. That’s when the Tour of Flanders slowly starts to pick up steam.
Via the Wolvenberg and three back-to-back cobbled sectors, the riders hit the Molenberg. Not long after, the cobbles of the Paddestraat mark the halfway point of the race.
After tackling the Berendries and Valkenberg, the riders get a brief respite — 13 kilometres without a single hurdle. But then the chaos begins, with the Eikenberg, Koppenberg, Mariaborrestraat, Steenbeekdries, Stationsberg, and Taaienberg all packed into an intense 15-kilometre stretch.
At the top of the Taaienberg, there are still 20 kilometres to go before the grand finale unfolds on the Oude Kwaremont and Paterberg. The only climb in between is the Kruisberg/Hotond — a relatively long but straightforward ascent.
The tension hits boiling point when the first riders tackle the cobbled Oude Kwaremont with just under 19 kilometres to go. The 2.2-kilometre climb at 4% is quickly followed by the Paterberg. Also cobbled, but much shorter and brutally steep — 360 metres at 12.9%, with the steepest kicker at 20.3%.
From the summit of the Paterberg, it’s a flat 13.3-kilometre run to the finish.
Last year, Shirin van Anrooij kicked off the finale with an attack just before the Oude Kwaremont. After the Paterberg, she was joined by her teammate Elisa Longo Borghini and Kasia Niewiadoma. The chasing group — Marianne Vos, Lotte Kopecky, Puck Pieterse, Silvia Persico, Demi Vollering — couldn’t close the gap. In the finishing straight, Van Anrooij launched the sprint for Longo Borghini, and the Italian sealed the deal in style.
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Other interesting reads: results and start list 2025 women’s Tour of Flanders 2025.
Tour of Flanders for women 2025: route, profiles, more
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