Pogacar, from the UAE Team Emirates-XRG team, and his great one-day classic rival Mathieu van der Poel<\/a> (Alpecin-Premier Tech) were the strongest in the pack and rode together at the front with about 18 kilometres remaining when the world champion launched an attack in the final ascent of the Oude Kwaremont. <\/p>\n Pogacar’s move last year on the same climb had proved decisive, but this time van der Poel was not dropped and managed to limit the gap to just a few seconds at the top of the hill.<\/p>\n Van der Poel, however, could not close the gap and Pogacar gradually extended his lead, redoubling his effort on the Paterberg, a short but brutal cobbled climb with gradients exceeding 20 per cent. That proved too much for van der Poel, a three-time winner of the race, who lagged 15 seconds behind at the summit.<\/p>\n Once he realized he would not be caught, the four-time Tour de France winner sat up, raising his arms in triumph and punching the air as he crossed the line 33 seconds ahead of van der Poel.<\/p>\n On his Tour of Flanders debut<\/a>, Remco Evenepoel<\/a> (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) finished third ahead of Wout Van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike).<\/p>\n Pogacar and van der Poel were mobbed by photographers and warmly hugged each other after the finish. <\/p>\n However, the Slovenian could face a fine from local authorities after \u2060running a red light at a railway crossing.<\/p>\n Pogacar and a few other cyclists at the front of the peloton continued across the \u2060tracks despite warnings as \u200bthey \u2060looked to reel in a breakaway, while the rest of the \u2060chasing pack came to a halt.<\/p>\n Pogacar said \u200che was not given sufficient warning to slow down for the crossing, saying: “Suddenly three \u200cguys jump on the middle \u200cof the road and start waving to stop. <\/p>\n \u201cHow can you \u2060stop in one second? I think they could prevent this by stopping us before, no? Not 10 metres before the crossing. I was thinking, maybe it’s like some protesters or something crazy is going on.”<\/p>\n Belgian \u200cnewspaper Het Laatste Nieuws reported that \u200bthe East Flanders Public Prosecutor’s Office \u200cintended to prosecute \u2060the riders, who could be hit \u2060with fines ranging from 320 euros to 4,000 euros \u200cas well \u200bas a driving ban \u200cof eight days. <\/p>\n Also known as De Ronde (The Tour), the Tour of Flanders is one of cycling’s most challenging one-day races and was first held in 1913. This year’s 278km (172.7-mile) route featured 16 short but punishing climbs and several cobblestone sections.<\/p>\n The race is one of the “monuments” of cycling \u2014 the five most prestigious one-day events in the sport \u2014 along with Milan-San Remo, Paris-Roubaix, Liege-Bastogne-Liege and the Giro di Lombardia.<\/p>\n Pogacar triumphed at Milan-San Remo for the first time earlier this year and could win all five this year. The only Monument missing in his impressive trophy cabinet is Paris-Roubaix, which takes place next weekend.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Tadej-Pogacar-8066hkhu.jpeg\")
(Belga\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Tadej-Pogacar-kkgu27me.jpeg\")
(Belga\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n
![\"Demi](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Demi-Vollering-x7ysvu5r.jpeg\")
Demi Vollering won the Tour of Flanders for the first time (Belga\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/p>\n