The spring classics season is in full swing and on Easter Sunday we will witness the 23rd edition of the Tour of Flanders Women, an exciting and thrilling race that has often smiled upon Italian colors. The honor roll features three Italian victories: one by Marta Bastianelli in 2019 and two by Elisa Longo Borghini in 2015 and 2024, but this year the Italian riders could leave their mark once again. The most anticipated athlete? Certainly Lotte Kopecky, the defending champion who leads the honor roll with a record of 3 victories and, with this being her home race, will do everything to cross the finish line with arms raised.

The Tour of Flanders Women will not start from Antwerp like the men's race (which will be held shortly before), but in the finale there will be all the most iconic climbs. The start is set from Oudenaarde, the symbolic city of Flanders where the finish line is located after 164.1 km. The rich and appetizing menu includes 6 cobblestone sections and 9 climbs to tackle during the day, some of the most famous from the Flemish Monument Classic. The first part of the race is rather straightforward, a long winding stretch of about eighty kilometers where the first 3 cobblestone sections will be tackled, though they shouldn't cause difficulties for any of the most anticipated athletes.

At kilometer 82, the first climb of the day will be tackled, the Wolvenbeerg is only 500 m long with an average gradient of 6.2%, a first taste of what will happen in the following kilometers. After two gravel sections, the following will be tackled in order: Molenberg (400 m at 6.7%), Marlboroughstraat (1.6 km at 3.1%), Eikenberg (1.1 km at 5.2%) and the famous Koppenberg (600 m at 9.5%) which, positioned 45 km from the finish, will bring the competition into full swing. The race will pass through the Taainberg (500 m at 8.2%), Oude Kruisberg (2.6 km at 4.2%) which will lead the athletes to the final 16 km where the Old Kwaremont (2 km at 4.5%), the symbolic climb of the race, and the Paterberg (400 m at 9.4%) which will end 13 km from the finish will be tackled.

Lotte Kopecky is the most anticipated athlete by the local crowd and after her victory at Sanremo, her odds of winning Flanders for the fourth time have increased. Should she manage it, she would set a new record. Supporting the Belgian athlete will be an incredible squad with equally outstanding riders ready to enter the action and chase victory—just two names are enough: Lorena Wiebes and Mischa Bredevold. If we want to talk about fierce opponents, we must certainly start with Demi Vollering and her Fdj United Suez team, which will also field Elise Chabbey and Franziska Koch, the winner and third-place finisher at Strade Bianche. Another team determined to perform well is Movistar, which will have several cards to play starting with Marlen Reusser, recently winner of Dwars door Vlaanderen, Liane Lippert, third at Flanders 2025, and Cat Ferguson in case of a sprint finish, which is now extremely rare. Among the athletes to pay attention to are also Pauline Ferrand Prevot, second last year, Noemi Ruegg, in excellent form after second place at Sanremo, Puck Pieterse and Kimberley Le Court Pienaar.

On the Italian front, Elisa Longo Borghini is certainly the most anticipated athlete, but there is also much curiosity about her form. The Italian champion returned to racing last Wednesday but has one of the strongest teams at the start, and two other Italian riders could make the difference: Eleonora Camilla Gasparrini and Silvia Persico. Elisa Balsamo will be at the start highly motivated and eager to perform well, as will Letizia Paternoster, but the Italian rider to pay closer attention to seems to be Letizia Borghesi, who finished sixth at Flanders last year and second at Paris-Roubaix. It's almost unnecessary to say that the northern classics are her favorite races.