Train with former world champions Philippe Gilbert and Anna van der Breggen

Zwift has seen a sharp rise in demand over the last few weeks, as cyclists get used to life on lockdown.

While many are using the indoor training app for races and workouts, Zwift are making sure we can also stay in touch with some of the biggest professional cyclists in the world.

With no clear indication of when racing will return, pros like Annemiek van Vleuten and Simon Yates have taken to the roads of Watopia during the current crisis.

Zwift has now announced the latest heroes taking to Zwift to ride alongside regular users – former world champions Philippe Gilbert and Anna van der Breggen.

The Classics stars will be the hosts in the new Zwift Royal Classics Series, a collection of Classics inspired workouts running throughout April.

Lotto-Soudal rider Gilbert and Van der Breggen (Boels-Dolmans) will be leading select rides, with the workouts designed by Kevin Poulton who coached Mathew Hayman to Paris-Roubaix victory in 2016.

Zwift CEO Eric Min said: “It’s an honour to have these two great champions leading this series for us.

“The Classics are races that all us cycling fans love to watch and dream of taking part.

“While it’s only ever a select number of the very best who get to battle it out, I look forward to getting a small taste of the physicality of these races on Zwift this month.”

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This new Zwift series aims to give riders a taste of the relentless accelerations and stresses that characterise the cobbled Classics.

Starting on March 30 and running through to April 20, you can sign up to these events via the Zwift Companion app.

Earlier this month, British Cycling announced its own series of races, workouts and time trials on Zwift, to encourage people to stay active during the lockdown.

The eight-week series of races kicked off this week.