One of the season’s last kermesses is scheduled this week.
Belgium’s oldest kermesse, Textielprijs Vichte was created in 1928, when Alfred Hamerlinck took the victory. It was the first of six wins that he took throughout his career there, which make him the all-time victory record holder, even though almost a century has passed since his last success.
The course is a flat one, consisting of ten laps of a 16.85km circuit whose highlight will be the Tiegemberg, a hill which can play an important role in the outcome. Soudal Quick-Step will be present as the start with a strong mix of World Tour and Devo riders, ready to give their best Tuesday afternoon: Ayco Bastiaens, Matthijs De Clercq, Naud De Clercq, Gil Gelders, Mauri Vansevenant, and Matijs Van Strijthem.
“Textielprijs Vichte is a prestigious kermesse with a very nice course. We usually have a fast race, and with the nice weather predicted for Tuesday, it shouldn’t be any different this year, which means the average speed could reach 50km/h. We have a solid squad ready to take on this race and we hope to get a good result”, said sports director Iljo Keisse, himself a three-time winner of this event.
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