European Championships in Limburg, Belgium will be like Ghent-Wevelgem: “Everyone has a chance in this tournament”

interview Cobblestones, short descents, but a sprint at the end? That seems the most likely scenario at the moment for the European Road Cycling Championships, which will be held for the first time in Flanders in mid-September. At least that’s the vision of course designer and race director Wim van Herweghe (EK Limburg 2024 vzw, a collaboration between Flanders Classics and vzw Limburg Demarreert).

The European Championships will be held this fall in the Flemish province of Limburg. This is a part of the country that is known primarily in Belgium as a popular – if not the most popular – region in the country for cyclists. However, unlike other provinces in the country, there are hardly any organised competitions for professionals.

“Even more than with the 2021 World Championships in Leuven (also designed and organised by Flanders Classics, ed.), we had to start from scratch,” says Van Herweghe. “We applied the same concept as we did for the World Cup. On the one hand, we wanted to have a circuit in the city. For this we looked at Hasselt, the provincial capital. This is the ideal centre with lots of shops, lots of stands and lots of people moving around. There are possibilities there. On the other hand, we also wanted a part of the course with a Flanderist content. If you organise a major championship in Flanders, you look for the typical elements of Flemish cycling, such as cobbled sections and Flemish slopes. It wasn’t always easy here, but I still think it has turned out to be a beautiful course worthy of the European Championships.”

All the championships – road and time trials – start in Heusden-Zolder. This is a place where cycling breathes, mainly due to the famous Zolder Circuit, where cycling sessions are held on the motor circuit every week. But it is also the location where the 2002 Road World Championships were held, and especially where the top-level cross race is held every year. An additional pillar has recently been added, with the brand new Sport Vlaanderen Heusden-Zolder Velodroom Limburg; a state-of-the-art cycling track created by former cyclist Mark Wouters.

“You have a beautiful location in Heusden-Zolder. We start with all the competitions on the track and then we go around the Velodroom. We originally wanted to start the time trials on the racetrack. However, it was not technically justified to drive from inside to outside, because there are some bends on this road. It was Mark Waters’ dream to start indoors, but the risk was too great and it would have damaged the sport too much. So we start outside, but we make sure that the location has the right attention and visibility.

From Heusden-Zolder, the road trips then visit part of the province of Limburg. “We will soon head towards the cyclocross town of Zonhoven, but the Wijers areas are also discussed – some beautiful green areas that people in the region are very interested in. Through the open-air museum Bokrijk and Genk, there are more sights, until after about forty kilometres we reach Hasselt.

The finish will be later on this circuit – Hasseltlose, but the first three times for the men and the two for the women are just a “warm-up”. In Hasselt, we have the 14.2-kilometre city circuit which Van Herweghe and the European Championship organisers are very excited about. “We really want to stimulate the championship atmosphere there. I would describe the loop in Hasselt as a fast loop, where the riders are constantly sent on wide roads. Right after the finish, we ride through the city centre for a while, but otherwise it’s always a double track.

It then continues through a connecting section – which, according to Van Herweghe, should not be underestimated due to the 500-metre-long cobblestones of the Printhagendreef – towards the Limburg loop. He has called it the Flandrien loop for this edition. “We have relied to some extent on the current Limburg Tour, which is also owned by Flanders Classics. There are many opportunities in the Bloesemstreek around Borgloon and Tongeren to make things difficult for the riders.

Van Herweghe talks about two cobbled sections – Manshoven (1,300m) and Ob de Kriezel (1,550m) – that start the loop, followed by two bad slopes; the Colmontberg (800m at 4.5%, max 6.5%) and the Zamelenberg (800m at 4.3%, max 5.4%). The elite men complete the loop three times and the women twice. “If you could connect them all together, it would result in a completely uneven track with Flanders content. These are the two most famous slopes in the region. We chose not to talk too much about the slopes, because the Bloesemstreek is really undulating. By the way, it’s a very beautiful area and will make for beautiful photos.”

“In my opinion, the cobblestones are two beautiful strips, and they are also very long. They are both more than a kilometre, a bit ascending and technical. The cobblestone sections themselves may not be the most difficult, but you know how the races are in Flanders. Usually everyone wants to be at the front to start those passages. The cobblestones do the racing. The cobblestones on Op de Kriezel are in good condition and they are wide there, so the wind can play a role. In addition, right after the cobblestones there is a chance of fans pulling in, and then after the next bend the two slopes follow closely together. It is also the same story: the pro has to stand twice on those slopes and he is at the top. But the Zammelenberg is also very narrow, so everyone will want to sit at the front. If there have already been strong races before, that can be a factor. Even in the Tour of Flanders, the riders only find it difficult on the Oude Kwaremont on the last time.

After the Limburg loop, the riders still have about forty kilometres of racing left. Through another connecting section with cobblestones at Printhagendreef, the riders will ride back to the already well-known Hasselt loop to reach the final. “There it will be a matter of evaluating the sprinters’ teams. They will have a dream final with the Hasselt loop. In the last four kilometres of the loop, we take one of the main access roads to Hasselt, which can be considered the ideal access road. Nine metres wide, free of central reservations. There is a gentle bend at the end, but it is almost invisible. If we start running, the faster guys can prepare for a clear sprint opportunity at Koning Bodewijnlaan, near the tourist square of Colonel Dussartplein.

Conclusion: According to Van Herweghe, what is the most realistic scenario after 220km for men and 160km for women? “There are chances to open the race, but everything depends on the weather and the riders. If every major country came up with a sprint team, it would be more manageable. But I see this European Championship as a light version of Gent-Wevelgem. It is also a typical race where anything can happen and you often get surprises. Of course you don’t have a monster like the Kemmelberg on the course, but you get an open race that can also be won by the sprinter.