Waiting for Paris-Roubaix on Sunday and following the Tour of Flanders, racing continues in Belgium and today all eyes will be on the sprinters.
This is no ordinary race, but the Scheldeprijs, the little world championship for sprinters, which is held every year on the border between Belgium and the Netherlands.

As we've said, it's a race for sprinters and in the roll of honour, all the winners you read about are or have been the fastest in the World Tour. We start with Philipsen who won in 2021 and 2023, up until the last two editions where Tim Merlier has been victorious. But there are also victories from Kittel, Jacobsen and Kristoff.

Today we will probably witness a particularly thrilling edition, thanks to the presence of Jasper Philipsen himself, but it remains to be seen whether Tim Merlier is approaching his best form or if Dylan Groenewegen will emerge victorious, as he seems to have regained perfect condition. The total distance to cover is 202.8 kilometres and for the ninth time in its history the Scheldeprijs finishes in the Dutch city of Terneuzen, not far from the Belgian border.

The official start will be given at Stadhuisplein, after which the riders will cross the Westerschelde tunnel heading towards Ellewoutsdijk, in the Zuid-Beveland region. Here, as we've often seen, the wind has free rein and riders will need to be skilled at organising themselves. It will therefore be essential to pay attention to getting into the echelons almost immediately to avoid being dropped. Although we're talking about a course for sprinters and therefore flat, the scenery is truly beautiful, with passages through Heinkenszand, Biezelinge, Schore, Kruiningen, Oostdijk, Krabbendijke and Stationsbuurt.

After covering just under 140 kilometres, the peloton will reach the Belgian border at Essen, near Antwerp. North of Antwerp's port, the route continues through Kalmthout, Wuustwezel, Hoogstraten, Rijkevorsel and Brecht, to reach the local circuit of Schoten, which, just like last year, is 16.9 kilometres long. The first part will be through the narrow streets of Schoten's centre, while in the second part of the circuit the riders will head towards Wijnegem, Schilde and Schoten. In this section of the circuit cyclists will find a cobbled section 1700 metres long, for the rest the road will be flat with asphalt. From this point onwards the peloton will begin to stretch out as they cross the Albert Canal 6.5 kilometres from the finish. Here, the wind will return to blow, while the peloton will have already organised itself heading towards the centre of Schoten.

As is tradition, the finish line is located on Churchilllaan in Schoten, a road wider than six metres. In the final kilometre, we will no longer find the deviation along Borkelstraat, as in 2022. Therefore, the final straight will once again be one and a half kilometres long, except for a slight bend just over three hundred metres from the Schoten finish line. The circuit will be completed 4 times and at the end the winner will cross the finish line after covering 202.8 kilometres.