E3 Saxo Classic heralds the return of the Wout van Aert vs Mathieu van der Poel rivalry

With just over a week to go until the Tour of Flanders, here's the key information, route, start list and riders to watch for E3

Mathieu van der Poel, Wout van Aert and Tadej Pogačar at the 2023 E3 Saxo Classic
(Image credit: Getty Images)

In its 66th edition, the E3 Saxo Classic is the only one of the big Classics to not be run by either Flanders Classics or ASO. As a result, it’s notorious for its controversial publicity, and only has a men’s event, but away from that, it is a thrilling race.

Effectively, it is a miniature Tour of Flanders, featuring the likes of the Paterberg, Oude Kwaremont and the Taainberg across its 208km, although it has a fairly flat run in, ending seemingly in a residential street. Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) has won the last two editions.

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