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The Ronde van Vlaanderen or the Tour of Flanders, as it is known in English, is one of cycling’s legendary spring classics and one of the most fascinating one-day races in the sport.

The 250km route twists through the Flemish countryside and hits steep cobbled climbs, creating a thrilling sporting spectacle for the many thousands of spectators who watch from the roadside and the millions of enthralled TV viewers around the world.

It is also possible for cycling fans to test their own ability on the cobbles and emulate their idols by riding the Ronde van Vlaanderen cyclosportif event the day before the men’s race. 15,000 accepted the challenge in 2009 and even more are expected to ride on Saturday April 3rd this year. There is also a women’s Ronde van Vlaanderen which is part of the UCI Women Road World Cup and finishes before the men’s race.

Both the UCI ProTour race and the cyclosportif ride start in the beautiful town of Bruges and finish on a slightly rising straight road in Meerbeke, southwest of Brussels. Before then riders must cover the now legendary climbs of the Oude Kwaremont, the Koppenberg, the Muur- Kapelmuur and the Bosberg, the last ‘berg’ just a few kilometres from the finish.

The 2010 race route has been slightly modified by race organisers and more radical changes are planned for 2011, with an expected reshuffling of the climbs in the decisive final part of the race.

This year the Eikenmolen climb has been removed to make a more exciting and uncertain final part of the race. Belgium’s Stijn Devolder (Quick Step) attacked just before the Eikenmolen climb to win in 2008 and 2009 but he will have to change his race strategy if he wants to add a third victory to his list of achievements.