UCI Women’s race Leiedal Koerse preview

Saturday 29 April sees three British teams tackling the UCI 1.2 race Leiedal Koerse in Belgium

AWOL O’SHEA, DAS-Handsling and Hutchinson-Brother UK are heading across the channel fto race the Leiedal Koerse. They will be facing some stiff competition with twenty-five teams taking part. All three teams have been racing in Belgium and Holland recently. DAS-Handsling’s Monica Greenwood had two wins and a second place on a recent racing trip. And Emma Jeffers took third at the GP AXA Assur Reygaerts – Herne kermesse. Hutchinson-Brother UK’s Ruth Shier took two victories in the UK recently at the Dave Peck Memorial and Finsbury Park CC road race. The team also raced at the Zuiderzeeronde in Holland, gaining valuable experience against WorldTour teams. AWOL-O’SHEA have also been getting their faces dirty on the continent, tackling the UCI 1.1 races the Scheldeprijs and Ronde de Mouscron.

The organisers are running three races on the Saturday for juniors, elite women and men’s elite. The main event is the Elite Women’s race, this starts at 1230, with juniors setting off an hour later. The men’s race – dubbed as the After Classics criterium – starts at 1730. With the start-finish in Bavikhove, you could spend all day enjoying the racing.

The race looks to be a tough day out for the elite women with a 107 km tour through the Flemish Ardennes. Climbs on the route include: Cote de Trieu, Hotond, Kortekeer, Stationsberg, Kapelberg, Patersberg, Kwaremont, Karnemelkbeekstraat (E3-col) , Varent and Tigemberg. If you’re not racing then head to their website and book a ticket in hospitality: beer, frites and bike racing, perfect!

If you can’t make it in person the race will be live-streamed, so you can watch it from the comfort of your own sofa.