The Ardennes classics[1] are three cycling classics held in mid-April in the Belgian Ardennes and southern Limburg in the Netherlands: Liège–Bastogne–Liège,[2] La Flèche Wallonne[3] and Amstel Gold Race.[4] First held in 1892, 1936 and 1966 respectively, the races are notable for their hilly courses, and often have similar riders competing for the top positions as the races are held closely following each other. Cyclists that are specialized in these hilly courses are known as puncheurs. In recent years, the three classics have been held within an 8-day timeframe.

Since the late 2010s, all three of the men's races have been joined by equivalent races on the women's circuit: Amstel Gold Race for Women, La Flèche Wallonne Féminine and Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes.

History

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Prior, there was already a points classification for the Belgian Ardennes classics, called Ardennes Weekend (combining La Flèche Wallonne and Liège–Bastogne–Liège).

With the introduction of the Amstel Gold race, originally between both races, the period between the Belgian classics was extended to 1,5 week. Since then, the original points classification became unofficial.

The only male winners of the "triple" are Davide Rebellin in 2004 and Philippe Gilbert in 2011. Gilbert also won the Brabantse Pijl, another important hill classic in mid-April, winning the "quadruple" that year. Other riders to win all three races, though not in a single year, are Danilo Di Luca, Michele Bartoli, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault and Tadej Pogačar.

In 2017, women's races for all three of the Ardennes classics were held for the first time, with Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes making its debut alongside a revival of the Women's Amstel Gold Race, which had previously been held from 2001 to 2003, and La Flèche Wallonne Féminine, which has been held since 1998.[5][6][7] Anna van der Breggen immediately clinched the triple by winning all three races, being followed by team-mate Lizzie Deignan in second and Katarzyna Niewiadoma in third in all three events.[5]

There is no official competition connecting the three races, although there have been classifications in the past for the two Walloon races.

In recent years, these three hill classics are held in the second half of April, following a similar set of the Cobbled classics.

Later in the year, there are two similar 'trebles' in Italy: the Trittico Lombardo with the Tre Valli Varesine, Coppa Ugo Agostoni and Coppa Bernocchi in the Lombardy Region, and the Trittico di Autunno (Autumn Triptych) with Milano–Torino, Giro del Piemonte and Giro di Lombardia.

Winners

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Men's (since 1966)

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Year Amstel Gold Race La Flèche Wallonne Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1966   Jean Stablinski (FRA)   Michele Dancelli (ITA)   Jacques Anquetil (FRA)
1967   Arie den Hartog (NED)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (1/10)   Walter Godefroot (BEL)
1968   Harry Steevens (NED)   Rik Van Looy (BEL)   Valere Van Sweevelt (BEL)
1969   Guido Reybrouck (BEL)   Jos Huysmans (BEL)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (2/10)
1970   Georges Pintens (BEL) (1/2)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (3/10)   Roger De Vlaeminck (BEL) (1/2)
1971   Frans Verbeeck (BEL) (1/2)   Roger De Vlaeminck (BEL) (2/2)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (4/10)
1972   Walter Planckaert (BEL)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (5/10)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (6/10)
1973   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (7/10)   André Dierickx (BEL)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (8/10)
1974   Gerrie Knetemann (NED)   Frans Verbeeck (BEL) (2/2)   Georges Pintens (BEL) (2/2)
1975   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (9/10)   André Dierickx (BEL)   Eddy Merckx (BEL) (10/10)
1976   Freddy Maertens (BEL)   Joop Zoetemelk (NED) (1/2)   Joseph Bruyère (BEL) (1/2)
1977   Jan Raas (NED) (1/5)   Francesco Moser (ITA)   Bernard Hinault (FRA) (1/5)
1978   Jan Raas (NED) (2/5)   Michel Laurent (FRA)   Joseph Bruyère (BEL) (2/2)
1979   Jan Raas (NED) (3/5)   Bernard Hinault (FRA) (2/5)   Dietrich Thurau (DEU)
1980   Jan Raas (NED) (4/5)   Giuseppe Saronni (ITA)   Bernard Hinault (FRA) (3/5)
1981   Bernard Hinault (FRA) (4/5)   Daniel Willems (BEL)   Josef Fuchs (SUI)
1982   Jan Raas (NED) (5/5)   Mario Beccia (ITA)   Silvano Contini (ITA)
1983   Phil Anderson (AUS)   Bernard Hinault (FRA) (5/5)   Steven Rooks (NED) (1/2)
1984   Jacques Hanegraaf (NED)   Kim Andersen (DEN)   Sean Kelly (IRE) (1/2)
1985   Gerrie Knetemann (NED)   Claude Criquielion (BEL)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (1/7)
1986   Steven Rooks (NED) (2/2)   Laurent Fignon (FRA)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (2/7)
1987   Joop Zoetemelk (NED) (2/2)   Jean-Claude Leclercq (FRA)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (3/7)
1988   Jelle Nijdam (NED)   Rolf Gölz (DEU)   Adri van der Poel (NED)
1989   Eric Van Lancker (BEL) (1/2)   Claude Criquielion (BEL)   Sean Kelly (IRE) (2/2)
1990   Adri van der Poel (NED)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (4/7)   Eric van Lancker (BEL) (2/2)
1991   Frans Maassen (NED)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (5/7)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (6/7)
1992   Olaf Ludwig (GER)   Giorgio Furlan (ITA)   Dirk de Wolf (BEL)
1993   Rolf Järmann (SUI) (1/2)   Maurizio Fondriest (ITA)   Rolf Sørensen (DEN)
1994   Johan Museeuw (BEL)   Moreno Argentin (ITA) (7/7)   Evgeni Berzin (RUS)
1995   Mauro Gianetti (SUI)   Laurent Jalabert (FRA) (1/2)   Mauro Gianetti (SUI)
1996   Stefano Zanini (ITA)   Lance Armstrong (USA)   Pascal Richard (SUI)
1997   Bjarne Riis (DEN)   Laurent Jalabert (FRA) (2/2)   Michele Bartoli (ITA) (1/4)
1998   Rolf Järmann (SUI) (2/2)   Bo Hamburger (DEN)   Michele Bartoli (ITA) (2/4)
1999   Michael Boogerd (NED)   Michele Bartoli (ITA) (3/4)   Frank Vandenbroucke (BEL)
2000   Erik Zabel (GER)   Francesco Casagrande (ITA)   Paolo Bettini (ITA) (1/2)
2001   Erik Dekker (NED)   Rik Verbrugghe (BEL)   Oscar Camenzind (SUI)
2002   Michele Bartoli (ITA) (4/4)   Mario Aerts (BEL)   Paolo Bettini (ITA) (2/2)
2003   Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ) (1/3)   Igor Astarloa (ESP)   Tyler Hamilton (USA)
2004   Davide Rebellin (ITA) (1/5)   Davide Rebellin (ITA) (2/5)   Davide Rebellin (ITA) (3/5)
2005   Danilo Di Luca (ITA) (1/3)   Danilo Di Luca (ITA) (2/3)   Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ) (2/3)
2006   Fränk Schleck (LUX)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (1/9)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (2/9)
2007   Stefan Schumacher (GER)   Davide Rebellin (ITA) (4/5)   Danilo Di Luca (ITA) (3/3)
2008   Damiano Cunego (ITA)   Kim Kirchen (LUX)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (3/9)
2009   Sergei Ivanov (RUS)   Davide Rebellin (ITA) (5/5)   Andy Schleck (LUX)
2010   Philippe Gilbert (BEL) (1/6)   Cadel Evans (AUS)   Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ) (3/3)
2011   Philippe Gilbert (BEL) (2/6)   Philippe Gilbert (BEL) (3/6)   Philippe Gilbert (BEL) (4/6)
2012   Enrico Gasparotto (ITA) (1/2)   Joaquim Rodríguez (ESP)   Maxim Iglinsky (KAZ)
2013   Roman Kreuziger (CZE)   Daniel Moreno (ESP)   Dan Martin (IRL)
2014   Philippe Gilbert (BEL) (5/6)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (4/9)   Simon Gerrans (AUS)
2015   Michał Kwiatkowski (POL) (1/2)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (5/9)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (6/9)
2016   Enrico Gasparotto (ITA) (2/2)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (7/9)   Wout Poels (NED)
2017   Philippe Gilbert (BEL) (6/6)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (8/9)   Alejandro Valverde (ESP) (9/9)
2018   Michael Valgren (DEN)   Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) (1/3)   Bob Jungels (LUX)
2019   Mathieu van der Poel (NED)   Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) (2/3)   Jakob Fuglsang (DEN)
2020 Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic   Marc Hirschi (SUI)   Primož Roglič (SLO)
2021   Wout Van Aert (BEL)[8]   Julian Alaphilippe (FRA) (3/3)   Tadej Pogačar (SLO) (1/4)
2022   Michał Kwiatkowski (POL) (2/2)   Dylan Teuns (BEL)   Remco Evenepoel (BEL) (1/2)
2023   Tadej Pogačar (SLO) (2/4)   Tadej Pogačar (SLO) (3/4)   Remco Evenepoel (BEL) (2/2)
2024   Tom Pidcock (GBR)   Stephen Williams (GBR)   Tadej Pogačar (SLO) (4/4)
Year Amstel Gold Race La Flèche Wallonne Liège–Bastogne–Liège

Women's

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Year Amstel Gold Race for Women La Flèche Wallonne Féminine Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes
1998 Race not held   Fabiana Luperini (ITA) (1/3) Race not held
1999   Hanka Kupfernagel (GER)
2000   Geneviève Jeanson (CAN)
2001   Debby Mansveld (NED)   Fabiana Luperini (ITA) (2/3)
2002   Leontien van Moorsel (NED)   Fabiana Luperini (ITA) (3/3)
2003   Nicole Cooke (GBR) (1/4)   Nicole Cooke (GBR) (2/4)
2004 Race not held   Sonia Huguet (FRA)
2005   Nicole Cooke (GBR) (3/4)
2006   Nicole Cooke (GBR) (4/4)
2007   Marianne Vos (NED) (1/7)
2008   Marianne Vos (NED) (2/7)
2009   Marianne Vos (NED) (3/7)
2010   Emma Pooley (GBR)
2011   Marianne Vos (NED) (4/7)
2012   Evelyn Stevens (USA)
2013   Marianne Vos (NED) (5/7)
2014   Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (FRA)
2015   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (1/10)
2016   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (2/10)
2017   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (3/10)   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (4/10)   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (5/10)
2018   Chantal Blaak (NED)   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (6/10)   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (7/10)
2019   Katarzyna Niewiadoma (POL) (1/2)   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (8/10)   Annemiek van Vleuten (NED) (1/2)
2020 Cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (9/10)   Lizzie Deignan (GBR)
2021   Marianne Vos (NED) (6/7)   Anna van der Breggen (NED) (10/10)   Demi Vollering (NED) (1/4)
2022   Marta Cavalli (ITA) (1/2)   Marta Cavalli (ITA) (2/2)   Annemiek van Vleuten (NED) (2/2)
2023   Demi Vollering (NED) (2/4)   Demi Vollering (NED) (3/4)   Demi Vollering (NED) (4/4)
2024   Marianne Vos (NED) (7/7)   Katarzyna Niewiadoma (POL) (2/2)   Grace Brown (AUS)
Year Amstel Gold Race for Women La Flèche Wallonne Féminine Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes

Statistics

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  • Active cyclists marked in bold.

Most Ardennes classics wins per male rider

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Rank Name Total wins Amstel Gold Race La Flèche Wallonne Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1 Eddy Merckx 10 2 (1973, 1975) 3 (1967, 1970, 1972) 5 (1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975)
2 Alejandro Valverde 9 0 5 (2006, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017) 4 (2006, 2008, 2015, 2017)
3 Moreno Argentin 7 0 3 (1990, 1991, 1994) 4 (1985, 1986, 1987, 1991)
4 Philippe Gilbert 6 4 (2010, 2011, 2014, 2017) 1 (2011) 1 (2011)
5 Bernard Hinault 5 1 (1981) 2 (1979, 1983) 2 (1977, 1980)
Jan Raas 5 5 (1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982) 0 0
Davide Rebellin 5 1 (2004) 3 (2004, 2007, 2009) 1 (2004)
8 Ferdi Kübler 4 0 2 (1951, 1952) 2 (1951, 1952)
Michele Bartoli 4 1 (2002) 1 (1999) 2 (1997, 1998)
Tadej Pogačar 4 1 (2023) 1 (2023) 2 (2021) (2024)
11 Marcel Kint 3 0 3 (1943, 1945, 1945) 0
Léon Houa 3 0 0 3 (1892, 1893, 1894)
Alfons Schepers 3 0 0 3 (1929, 1931, 1935)
Stan Ockers 3 0 2 (1953, 1955) 1 (1955)
Fred De Bruyne 3 0 0 3 (1956, 1958, 1959)
Alexander Vinokourov 3 1 (2003) 0 2 (2005, 2010)
Danilo Di Luca 3 1 (2005) 1 (2005) 1 (2007)
Julian Alaphilippe 3 0 3 (2018, 2019, 2021) 0

Most Ardennes classics wins per female rider

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Rank Name Total wins Amstel Gold Race La Flèche Wallonne Féminine Liège–Bastogne–Liège
1 Anna van der Breggen 10 1 (2017) 7 (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021) 2 (2017, 2018)
2 Marianne Vos 7 2 (2021, 2024) 5 (2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013) 0
3 Nicole Cooke 4 1 (2003) 3 (2003, 2005, 2006) 0
Demi Vollering 4 1 (2023) 1 (2023) 2 (2021, 2023)
5 Fabiana Luperini 3 0 3 (1998, 2001, 2002) 0
6 Annemiek van Vleuten 2 0 0 2 (2019, 2022)
Marta Cavalli 2 1 (2022) 1 (2022) 0
Katarzyna Niewiadoma 2 1 (2019) 1 (2024) 0

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Ardennes Classics". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 19 April 2015.
  2. ^ "Liège-Bastogne-Liège (Bel) - Cat.1.UWT". Mémoire du Cyclisme.
  3. ^ "Flèche Wallonne (Bel) - Cat.1.UWT". Mémoire du Cyclisme.
  4. ^ "Amstel Gold Race (Hol) - Cat.1.UWT". Mémoire du Cyclisme.
  5. ^ a b "The UCI Women's WorldTour Chronicle". Union Cycliste Internationale. 24 April 2017. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  6. ^ O'Shea, Sadhbh (13 April 2017). "Amstel Gold Race Women – Preview". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  7. ^ O'Shea, Sadhbh (17 April 2017). "Fleche Wallonne preview: Can anyone catch Van der Breggen?". cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 29 April 2017.
  8. ^ Long, Jonny (2021-04-18). "Wout van Aert beats Tom Pidcock in photo finish at Amstel Gold Race 2021". Cycling Weekly. Retrieved 2021-04-19.