The start of today’s race takes place in the centre of Liege. We will see the start of the race before heading off on our own little race. Today we will test your orientation by crisscrossing through this beautiful part of Belgium to see the race.
Liège–Bastogne–Liège began in 1892 to publicise the newspaper L’Expresse. It is because the paper was published in French that the route stayed in the southern, French-speaking half of Belgium. Its equivalent in the Dutch-speaking north is the Tour of Flanders. The first race was for amateurs, from Spa to Bastogne and back. It was won …
Liège–Bastogne–Liège began in 1892 to publicise the newspaper L’Expresse. It is because the paper was published in French that the route stayed in the southern, French-speaking half of Belgium. Its equivalent in the Dutch-speaking north is the Tour of Flanders.
The first race was for amateurs, from Spa to Bastogne and back. It was won by Leon Houa, who also won the first race for professionals in 1894. Until 1991 the race finished in Liege city centre, with a flat run into the finish. From 1992 the finish moved to the suburb of Ans, on the northern side of the city. The Côte de Saint Nicolas was added to the final kilometres, along with a final climb to the finish in Ans.
The start of today’s race takes place in the centre of Liege. We will see the start of the race before heading off on our own little race. As we did during all the spring-classics, today we will test your orientation by crisscrossing through this beautiful part of Belgium to see the race. Our preparation of the route is well known by famous ex-cyclists and some of them even try to follow us. They often wonder, year after year, how we manage to reach all the spectacular places.
Shortly after the race, we will travel to our hotel in Brussels, about an hour’s drive away. Tonight is our final night together so we will celebrate with a farewell dinner to celebrate our time at the Spring Classics.