KASIA’S LEADING EFFORTS EARN 2ND AT OMLOOP NIEUWSBLAD

After showing promising signs at her season-opening UAE Tour Women in early February, Kasia Niewiadoma-Phinney went away to complete the finishing touches, returning to the official ‘opening weekend’ of the 2026 season in fine form.

She claimed second in Saturday’s Omloop Nieuwsblad, her best-ever result in the first Belgian spring classic of the season, improving on her previous best of seventh in 2024.

“I’m generally happy with the result,” Kasia concluded post-race. “I think with a better position into the Muur, maybe I would have had extra legs to do something myself in the last bit.”

The most race-defining moment is usually the mighty Muur de Geraardsbergen, where gradients teeter close to 20% and gaps can blow out in an instant. On the frenetic lead-in to Geraardsbergen and its hallowed cobbled slopes, with less than 20km remaining in the 137km race, Zoe Bäckstedt and Chiara Consonni were caught in a large crash. Both were able to remount, but the delay was significant, and there were few worse places on course to be held up. Kasia herself had to battle to regain position and get on terms with Koch and Vollering (both TFS) after they launched strongly from the base.

Such moments are part and parcel of the unpredictable nature of the classics, particularly the first of the season. Kasia reflected on how the race unfolded overall:

“The race was just like a typical classics race with bad weather and proper final. The first part was nothing special – just fighting for position and trying to remain well-hydrated and well-fed in order to have the energy for the very intense final.”

That intensity reached both a physical and symbolic peak when impressively, Kasia crested the brutal cobbled slopes of the Muur with the fastest time of the day, leading past the iconic Kapel with just 15km remaining and accompanied only by Vollering.

The pair held a slender advantage over a chasing group of five, gradually extending their lead on the fast run-in toward the final climb of the day, the Bosberg. This short but demanding ascent was the last real opportunity for the collaboration to falter, yet they kept the pace firm and controlled. They entered the final 11km with a 40-second buffer, riding smoothly and committing fully as the chase behind gathered momentum; a podium was far from guaranteed. Ultimately, the race was decided in a sprint à deux, and while Kasia couldn’t quite match Vollering’s explosive finish, she secured a superb second place. Kasia’s approach to the final phase was clear:

“To go all out so the group behind didn’t catch us. I knew Demi was faster for winning the sprint, but sometimes after such a long race, you never know what can happen. But yeah, I didn’t find my sprinting legs at the end.”

She also spoke about the form she carried into the weekend:

“I knew from the recon ride that my legs were good! I worked really hard over the winter with my new coach and spent some decent time analysing how I could improve my seated accelerations.”

To put her performance into perspective, Saturday’s men’s winner, Mathieu van der Poel (APC), recorded the fastest ascent of the Muur van Geraardsbergen in 2:22 minutes. Kasia was just 15 seconds shy of that benchmark – a clear indication of the depth and strength within the women’s field.

Her impressive early-spring condition, combined with this confidence-boosting result, sets her up perfectly for the race that she has her heart and mind set on every March – Strade Bianche. More to come on the CANYON//SRAM zondacrypto roster and the team’s approach to next weekend’s Italian highlight.