After Van der Poel, Vollering also adds the Omloop to her list of achievements
CyclingSaturday, 28 February 2026 at 17:39
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Follow us on GoogleAfter the commanding win by Mathieu van der Poel in the men’s race, Demi Vollering has also claimed Omloop Het Nieuwsblad — taking the women’s edition in her first victory at the Flemish opener. The Dutch leader of FDJ–SUEZ didn’t debut like Van der Poel did, but she did win the race for the first time, after a superb finale against Kasia Niewiadoma.
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The women started in the afternoon, a few hours after the men, with the finish set for around 5:30 p.m. in Ninove. The peloton covered 137.2 kilometres and tackled the same finale, meaning the Muur van Geraardsbergen and the Bosberg as the final two key obstacles. Just like earlier in the day: rain, wind, and slick roads.
A four-rider breakaway coloured the opening hours. Lea Lin Teutenberg (Lotto Intermarché Ladies), Britt de Grave and Jony van den Eijnden (Citymesh–Customm), and Emilie Fortin (Minimax) joined forces and were allowed some space by the peloton. Attempts from others to bridge across were shut down, while a move by Alison Avoine was neutralised due to a closed level crossing.
The quartet’s advantage never rose beyond three minutes, and once the first climbs approached, the peloton rapidly increased the pace. On the Wolvenberg, Britt de Grave and Emilie Fortin pushed on, but by the time live coverage began at roughly 50 kilometres from the finish, the duo were already back for their efforts.
From the Haaghoek onwards, the race exploded with attacks. Lotte Kopecky, Alison Jackson, Fleur Moors and Elise Chabbey all took turns animating the action — and when things briefly settled after the Leberg, Chabbey (FDJ–SUEZ), Nina Berton (EF), Eleonora Gasparrini (UAE Team ADQ) and Kamilla Aasebo (Uno-X) suddenly had a full minute.
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Vollering vs Niewiadoma for Omloop victory
SD Worx–Protime recognised the danger and began to control the gap for Kopecky and Lorena Wiebes, with only the Parikeberg, the Muur and the Bosberg still to come. On the run-in to the Muur, however, things went wrong with a crash involving, among others, Zoë Backstedt and Chiara Consonni. The incident thinned the bunch on the iconic climb, and the four leaders were down to just 20 seconds.
Vollering didn’t wait around and launched straight from the foot of the Muur. Kopecky — possibly affected by the crash — wasn’t there. Niewiadoma, as so often, was more than willing to go with it, and suddenly two top-class riders were clear at the front. Vollering tried to shake the Canyon//SRAM rider on the Bosberg, but couldn’t force the split.
Together they powered into the final five kilometres, where there was little room left to simply ride away. That meant an uphill sprint in Ninove would decide it — and Vollering was convincingly the most explosive. That sealed her first-ever victory at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad — following Van der Poel earlier in the day.
Results Omloop Het Nieuwsblad 2026 – elite women
Results powered by FirstCycling.com
Bram van der PloegEditor-in-chief
Bram van der Ploeg (35) is the proud founder of In de Leiderstrui, IDL Pro Cycling's parent site, launched in 2018. Finally, he could create stories about the sport he had followed since childhood. He is the editor-in-chief on paper, but prefers to be with his recorder next to a rider, a team bus, or in the mud at a cyclocross race. Every year, from February to the end of May, Bram follows the entire Italian cycling season, from the Trofeo Laigueglia to the Giro d'Italia, with the grand finale in October in Lombardy. During that time, he lives in Tuscany, where he has since come to call Italy his 'home'.
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Latest Comments
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- - Quick question: when they said a rock on the road caused it near the finish, isn’t the run-in supposed to be swept by organisers? How common is that this late in a stage?cadencekingm29-08-2026
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