10 riders to watch at La Flèche Wallonne

From Vollering and Pidcock to the outsiders, here's our look at the names who could shine on the slopes of the Mur de Huy

16:35, Tuesday 16th April 2024

Daniel Benson

Editor in Chief

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From left to right: Cosnefroy, Vollering, Pidcock, Gigante

La Flèche Wallonne takes place on Wednesday, providing its usual mid-week drama on the super-steep slopes of the Mur de Huy.

Sandwiched between Amstel Gold Race and Liège-Bastogne-Liège, this is the mid-point of the Ardennes Classics campaign, and while it may be the most formulaic, the mad dash up the final climb of the Mur de Huy always promises a spectacle.

Both the men's and the women's races take place on Wednesday, both boasting an enviable start list, even if the men's defending champion, Tadej Pogačar, is not here and only dropping in for Liège.

Here we've picked out some of the big names and some of the less-heralded names, taking a closer look at the riders who may be in the thick of the action on the Mur de Huy on Wednesday afternoon.

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Women's contenders
Men's contenders

Women's riders to watch

Demi Vollering (SD Worx-Protime)

Demi Vollering winning the 2023 Flèche Wallonne

Living up to the season she had in 2023 was always going to be tough, and it must be noted that the SD Worx leader hasn’t always been a fast starter when it comes to early-season wins, but this feels different due to the nature of her off-the-bike situation. How Vollering's team communicated her impending departure – mid-race at Dwaars door Vlaanderen – followed by a press conference that sullied the public perception of the relationship between rider and team, has left an undeniable mark.

Whether that can be linked to the lack of wins remains to be seen, but the longer a drought goes on the more questions will be asked. Winning and retaining her La Flèche Wallonne title would go a long way to putting a lot of uncertainty and speculation to bed, and could spark the sort of run that saw the Dutch rider win the Ardennes triple 12 months ago.

Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl-Trek)

With Amstel Gold Race effectively reduced to a souped-up crit race, due to a very unfortunate traffic incident, Longo Borghini wasn’t able to truly demonstrate her form. The shortened course simply wasn’t hard enough for the Italian to make the difference. She’s still in devastating form, however, with three wins – including the Tour of Flanders – on her 2024 palmarès.

The 32-year-old has been on the podium three times in La Flèche Wallonne during her career but this feels like a prime opportunity for her to win a race that has narrowly slipped through her fingers. Lidl-Trek look armed to the teeth with options, but it’s Longo Borghini who remains the standout candidate. Gaia Realini would have made our list, too, but we tried to limit our picks to one rider per team.

Sarah Gigante (AG Insurance-Soudal)

Sarah Gigante returned to winning ways at the Tour Down Under at the start of the year

The return to European racing has been consolidated by a batch of domestique and support rides for the young Australian, who is still re-finding her feet after several years of bad luck and health problems. Domination at the Tour Down Under at the start of the year was the perfect antidote but racing in Europe is different.

That said, Gigante remains a world-class talent, and it will be fascinating to see her compete at La Flèche Wallonne, on a finish that perfectly suits her pocket-rocket speed when going uphill. Whether she’s up there competing for the win remains to be seen, but the 23-year-old is definitely worth watching.

Kasia Niewiadoma (Canyon-SRAM)

Niewiadoma continues to be one of the most consistent performers in the women’s WorldTour, with six top-10s this year from a possible eight race days. Second in the Tour of Flanders, and fourth in Strade Bianche, the Canyon rider will once again head to Belgium as a top-level favourite thanks to both her current condition and her record in the race, which consists of five top-10s from 10 starts.

The world gravel champion has the necessary skillset and the team to back her on Wednesday. She just needs all the stars to align to make the top step of the podium.

Évita Muzic (FDJ-Suez)

Evita Muzic at Strade Bianche earlier this Spring

A bit of a wildcard selection but Muzic has been building up nicely over the last couple of months and picked up second in the Grand Prix Féminin de Chambéry last weekend.

The French squad may lack an out-and-out leader with Cecilie Uttrup Ludwig still on the sidelines following her crash earlier this year but there’s real depth within the team and Muzic was fifth here last year after finishing on the podium in Chambéry a week beforehand.

There are more established riders on the start list, there’s no doubt, but Muzic looks primed to at least be in the reckoning on top of the Mur.

Men's riders to watch

Benoît Cosnefroy (Decathlon-AG2R)

Benoît Cosnefroy celebrates victory at De Brabantse Pijl seven days before La Flèche Wallonne

The 28-year-old already has four wins under his belt in 2024, including a first victory outside of French-speaking territories, at De Brabantse Pijl. He wasn’t in the main split at Amstel but La Flèche Wallonne is a different beast entirely, and Cosnefroy – who was second in 2020 – has the quality to be in the mix on Wednesday.

He’s not an out-and-out favourite but that lack of pressure and expectancy should play into the hands of the French rider and his underdog team.

David Gaudu (Groupama-FDJ)

Another French rider in form is David Gaudu, who won the Tour du Jura last weekend. He didn’t compete in Amstel due to the clash in dates, and La Flèche Wallonne is a major step up in terms of competition but on his day the 27-year-old is a formidable opponent, capable of winning at a WorldTour level.

His record in La Flèche Wallonne isn’t great, with just one top-10, but judging by his current form, he’s a rider to watch. His WorldTour stage racing this season hasn’t been great with two DNFs, but the one-day results have provided a welcome distraction, and a podium in Belgium is far from unattainable.

Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates)

Marc Hirschi (left) shares an Amstel beer with Tom Pidcock on the podium of the Amstel Gold Race

Juan Ayuso almost made the list but his crash at Amstel, coupled with Hirschi’s current form, gives the Swiss rider the edge. Of course, he’s won this race before, back in 2020, when the world appeared to be at the young rider’s feet.

The following years haven’t quite worked out in terms of that spectacular early trajectory but Hirschi has refound his mojo in a contract year and his ride in Amstel Gold Race was worthy of a podium and possibly more given the work he put in during several phases of the race. He’s got that punch that leans itself perfectly to the Mur too.

Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers)

Pidcock’s record in La Flèche Wallonne is far from spectacular, with three starts that include a DNF, a top-20 and a sixth place in 2021. He’s arguably better suited to the rolling terrain of Amstel and Liège than the uber-punchy nature of the Mur de Huy but given his form, morale, and momentum it’s impossible to write off the British rider.

He rode an almost faultless race in Amstel, and while it’s important to remember that he went over 12 months without a win on the road, he could be on the cusp of a spectacular season. He will be in the hunt on Wednesday before a mouth-watering proposition against Tadej Pogačar and Mathieu van der Poel in Liège.

Mattias Skjelmose (Lidl-Trek)

Mattias Skjelmose winning a stage of Paris-Nice last month

Last year’s runner-up returns to the race in fine fettle with a solid spring under his belt that includes a WorldTour win via a stage in Paris-Nice, a gaggle of placings and just a consistent level of performances on the back of his breakthrough 2023.

A 17th place in Amstel Gold Race probably didn’t do Skjelmose any justice in terms of demonstrating his form but with a teammate up the road and the winning break missed, there wasn’t much the Dane could have done in the final.

La Flèche Wallonne provides the Lild-Trek leader with another shot at winning his first Classic, and positioning and timing will be critical on the final haul to the line. The fact that there’s a really robust team around the 23-year-old should ensure that positioning isn’t a concern.