{"id":616530,"date":"2026-04-20T13:00:13","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T13:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/616530\/"},"modified":"2026-04-20T13:00:13","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T13:00:13","slug":"fleche-wallonne-femmes-2026-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/616530\/","title":{"rendered":"Fl\u00e8che Wallonne Femmes 2026 Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

After the Brabantse Pijl and the Amstel Gold Race, the Fl\u00e8che Wallonne is traditionally next in line in the series of hilly spring classics. In Huy, it usually comes down to the law of the strongest \u2014 and after a season already packed with drama in women’s cycling<\/a>, Wednesday promises more of the same. IDL Pro Cycling takes you through what to expect.The race has a rich history on the Mur de Huy. Anna van der Breggen<\/a> owns it more than anyone: six consecutive wins between 2016 and 2021 made the climb her personal territory. More recently, Demi Vollering<\/a> claimed the win in 2023, while 2024 belonged to Kasia Niewiadoma<\/a> in a brutal, rain-soaked edition. Last year, Puck Pieterse<\/a> announced herself on the Mur de Huy in style<\/a>, outsprinting Vollering to win on her debut. Now she returns to defend that title.Recent winners La Fl\u00e8che Wallonne Femmes2025 Puck Pieterse
2024 Kasia Niewiadoma<\/a>
2023 Demi Vollering<\/a>
2022 Marta Cavalli<\/p>\n

2020 Anna van der Breggen<\/p>\n

2019 Anna van der Breggen<\/p>\n

2018 Anna van der Breggen<\/p>\n

2017 Anna van der Breggen<\/p>\n

2016 Anna van der Breggen<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Route, weather and TV details: Fleche Wallonne Femmes 2026\"waalse-pijl-vrouwen\"\/<\/p>\n

The women’s race starts in Huy itself \u2014 unlike the men, who set off from nearby Herstal this year. From there, the peloton heads into the Namur province, where the C\u00f4te de Bissinau (2.2 km at 5.5%) and C\u00f4te de Petite Somme (1.2 km at 8.0%) serve as the first tests of the day. Warm-ups, really, before the race doubles back for the crucial local circuit around Huy.<\/p>\n

The Mur de Huy is tackled twice in total, with the C\u00f4te de Cherave (1.3 km at 8.1%) and C\u00f4te d’Ereffe (2.1 km at 5.0%) sandwiched in between. The Cherave summit lands just five kilometres from the finish \u2014 meaning a strong ride there could yet prove decisive.<\/p>\n

\"mur-huy-goede\"\/<\/p>\n

As almost always, though, everything will be settled on the Mur de Huy itself: 1.3 kilometres at an average 9.5%. Around 18:00 local time, we’ll know who follows Pieterse onto the roll of honour.<\/p>\n

Weather: Good conditions are forecast across Wallonia \u2014 around 16\u00b0C with little wind. A welcome contrast to the last two editions.<\/p>\n

Times<\/p>\n

Start: 1:40 p.m.<\/p>\n

Finish: approximately 5:56 p.m.<\/p>\n

Favorites La Fl\u00e8che Walloone Femmes 2026<\/p>\n

Note: the start list is not yet complete and may still change.<\/p>\n

Sunday’s Amstel Gold Race delivered a surprise winner in young Spaniard Paula Blasi<\/a>. The UAE Team ADQ rider will line up again on Wednesday, with her team expecting a strong showing \u2014 though sport director Michel Cornelisse has acknowledged that the element of surprise is gone. Teammate Karlijn Swinkels<\/a>, along with Maeva Squiban, also carries outsider status.The main contenders, however, are well aware of what’s coming. Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez) and Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon\/\/SRAM) were the two strongest riders on the Cauberg on Sunday, but had to settle for the lower steps of the Amstel podium. Both spoke afterwards of their desire to go one better in Huy<\/a>.Vollering noted that the Fl\u00e8che Wallonne is a different race to the Amstel \u2014 one that places even more emphasis on the finale. Her full team selection is not yet confirmed, but she is expected to have the support of fellow favourites Elise Chabbey<\/a> and Juliette Berthet.\"pauline-ferrand-prevot-demi-vollering-puck-pieterse\"\/Then there is Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot<\/a>. The Visma | Lease a Bike rider won this race 12 years ago \u2014 back in 2014 \u2014 and returns with Femke de Vries alongside her, with victory firmly in her sights. Defending champion Puck Pieterse of Fenix-Premier Tech is also back. She pipped Vollering on the Mur de Huy<\/a> last year and will be determined to do it again.And then there’s the small matter of Anna van der Breggen. The seven-time winner \u2014 arguably the greatest Fl\u00e8che Wallonne rider of all time \u2014 lines up for SD Worx-Protime alongside the impressive Nienke Vinke<\/a>, who shone in the Amstel. Van der Breggen is not among the absolute top favourites, but on this climb, you write her off at your peril.<\/p>\n

Further names to watch include world champion Magdeleine Vallieres (EF-Oatly), Noemi Ru\u00ebgg, and Liane Lippert (Movistar).<\/p>\n

IDL Pro Cycling top picks La Fl\u00e8che Walloone 2026Top favorites: Demi Vollering (FDJ-Suez) and Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon\/\/SRAM)<\/p>\n

Outsiders: Pauline Ferrand-Pr\u00e9vot (Visma | Lease a Bike), Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Premier Tech), Anna van der Breggen (SD Worx-Protime) and Paula Blasi (UAE Team ADQ)<\/p>\n

Longshots: Elise Chabbey, Juliette Berthet (FDJ-Suez), Noemi Ru\u00ebgg, Magdeleine Vallieres (EF-Oatly), Karlijn Swinkels, Maeva Squiban (UAE Team ADQ), Liane Lippert (Movistar), Femke de Vries (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Nienke Vinke (SD Worx-Protime)<\/p>\n

How to watch the women’s Fleche Wallonne 2026 on TV?After the men’s finish, scheduled around 4:30 p.m, you can watch the women’s final hour. Below you can find where to watch La Fl\u00e8che Wallonne<\/a> Femmes in English by country:United Kingdom –\u00a0HBO Max\u00a0now carries all of the UK cycling coverage.USA – You will need a subscription to\u00a0Peacock\u00a0to watch the racing in the USA.Canada –\u00a0FloBikes\u00a0carries the stream for Canadian fans. Again you will need a subscription, and times vary depending on locationAustralia -Australian fans can watch both the men’s and women’s races for free on\u00a0SBS on Demand.In Europe, you can watch all the action on\u00a0Eurosport.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After the Brabantse Pijl and the Amstel Gold Race, the Fl\u00e8che Wallonne is traditionally next in line in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":616531,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[19491,49,48,635,19488,26498,193252,19492,129275,82,20364],"class_list":{"0":"post-616530","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-anna-van-der-breggen","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-cycling","12":"tag-demi-vollering","13":"tag-kasia-niewiadoma","14":"tag-la-fleche-wallonne","15":"tag-pauline-ferrand-prevot","16":"tag-puck-pieterse","17":"tag-sports","18":"tag-womens-cycling"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/616530","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=616530"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/616530\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/616531"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=616530"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=616530"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=616530"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}