Since the victories of Bjorn Leukemans in 2015 and Dimitri Claeys in 2016, it became a tradition to finish on the podium of the GP Jef Scherens (1.1, 15/08) for Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux. This Sunday, the semi classic is the first race in Flanders since the national championships in June. After an early start on the Main Square in Leuven, thirteen laps of 14.9 kilometer have to be covered. The Wijnpers, Keizersberg and Sint-Antoniusberg are the difficulties in the 190 kilometer race, combined with the numerous corners. This GP Scherens is a sneak peek of next month’s World Championships. A little before 15h, the finish is expected in front of the Theatre.
The following seven riders have an important mission to pursue the series of podiums for Intermarché-Wanty-Gobert Matériaux at the GP Scherens: the Belgian riders Aimé De Gendt, Tom Devriendt and Baptiste Planckaert, the French neo pro Théo Delacroix, the German rider Jonas Koch and the Dutch riders Corné van Kessel and Stijn Daemen, who will be racing his firs race as a trainee with the World Team. Sports director Hilaire Van der Schueren is determined to continue the success of the past weeks on Belgian soil.
We want to be present in the front from the beginning of the race in order to prevent chasing for the remainder of the race. Controlling the peloton for one lap can be fatal in this difficult GP Scherens. The hard course in Leuven is a succession of climbs and corners. Actually, this is an easy race, if you're strong! We've got a couple of riders who can be ambitious: Aimé De Gendt, Tom Devriendt, Jonas Koch and Baptiste Planckaert. For Stijn Daemen it is his first race as a trainee in our team and he will receive the mission to be attentive from the start, together with Théo Delacroix and Corné van Kessel. In this semi classic it is unpredictable whether a small early breakaway or an important group will go in the beginning. What we know for sure, is that strong riders will be on the podium at the end of the day.
Selection:
Aimé De Gendt
Stijn Daemen
Théo Delacroix
Tom Devriendt
Jonas Koch
Baptiste Planckaert
Corné van Kessel
Sportive Direction:
Hilaire Van der Schueren
