The E3 Saxo Classic, which will take place next year on Friday, March 27, will now cross the E3-Col and the Oude Kwaremont twice. The organizers of the spring classic have chosen a slightly tougher route, with more elevation gain. This is entirely related to the junior race that will be held on the same day.
The organization wants to avoid the E3 Saxo Classic clashing with the junior race, which is part of the Nations Cup. "We had a scare this year," said organizer Jacques Coussens on Wednesday during a press event for the E3 Saxo Classic to Het Nieuwsblad.
"At one point, our junior race appeared to intersect with the E3 Saxo Classic. We don’t want that to happen again, hence this change. The passage through Geraardsbergen is removed," Coussens outlined. "Via the Paddenstraat, we head toward La Houppe, which is our second climb of the day. It’s also new that we will pass the E3-Col and the Oude Kwaremont twice each."
Mathieu van der Poel broke away this year on the Oude Kwaremont – photo: Fotopersburo Cor Vos
"We will approach this last climb (the Oude Kwaremont, ed.) from two different roads. The total elevation gain will increase from 2,800 to 3,000 meters and the race will be about five kilometers longer. This makes the E3 Saxo Classic just a bit tougher."
Harelbeke
Besides this route change, the organizers also announced that Harelbeke will continue to serve as the start and finish location of the E3 Saxo Classic for the coming years. This is a new agreement covering the next six editions of the race. This year, Mathieu van der Poel succeeded himself with a long solo on the Stasegemsesteenweg.
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2025 |  Mathieu van der Poel |
| 2024 | Mathieu van der Poel |
| 2023 |  Wout van Aert |
| 2022 | Wout van Aert |
| 2021 |  Kasper Asgreen |
| 2019 |  Zdenek Stybar |
| 2018 | Niki Terpstra |
| 2017 | Greg Van Avermaet |
| 2016 |  Michal Kwiatkowski |
| 2015 |  Geraint Thomas |
