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Van Avermaet takes his first E3 Harelbeke title

Belgians dominate podium with Gilbert and Naesen on the other steps

March 24, 2017
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Greg Van Avermaet (Belgium/BMC) added another honour to his growing palmares on Friday, winning the E3 Harelbeke on home soil. The BMC rider beat out two compatriots who escaped on the Oude Kwaremont. Van Avermaet took Omloop Het Nieuwsblad back in late February and was runner-up at Strade Bianche.


E3 Harelbeke launches Flanders Week, with Gent-Wevelgem on Sunday and the Monument Classic Tour of Flanders the following Sunday. E3’s layout is similar to both the Tour of Flanders and Wednesday’s Dwars Door Vlaanderen, with fifteen climbs and five sections of cobbles often on narrow roads for a total distance of 206-km. The Paterberg and Oude Kwaremont pairing at 40-km to go was sure to incite skirmishing among the favourites, although sometimes a decisive move is launched on climb seven, the Taaienberg, with 70-km remaining.


Almost all the heavies were on the start line, with World Tour leader Peter Sagan and Olympic champ Van Avemaet back at it after skipping the DDV. Five-time winner Tom Boonen and Matteo Trentin were added to Quick Step’s DDV core of Philippe Gilbert, Zdenek Stybar and Niki Terpstra. Sky’s likely lads Ian Stannard and Luke Rowe were there, but the current E3 champion and this year’s Strade Bianche and Milan-San Remo winner Michal Kwiatskowski was keeping his powder dry for the Ardennes Classics in April’s latter half.

Champion Kwiatkowski skipped this season, but Sagan and Stannard were ready to cross swords.
Champion Kwiatkowski skipped this season, but Sagan and Stannard were ready to cross swords.

There wasn’t even an attempt at a breakaway inside the first 60-km, with 43-km covered within the first hour on a warm, sunny day. Unfortunately, a crash in the first hour forced Tony Gallopin (France/Lotto-Soudal) off the bike and into the hospital to check his wrist. His team reported no broken bones.

Finally, at the 70-km mark a few riders tried to flare off but to no avail. Sixteen kilometres later a sextet–including the wonderfully named Taco van der Hoorne–managed to shrug off the peloton, running up a 1:45 lead before the second climb of the day, La Houppe.


Sure enough, on the 650-metre, 9.5% Taaienberg, Boonen put in a dig from the peloton soon after two teammates were delayed by a crash. This made a selection including Sagan, Van Avermaet and a few others. One of the riders who made it was Boonen’s teammate Gilbert, who made another move in the way to the Boigneberg. Van Avermaet, Sep Vanmarcke and Bora-Hansgrohe’s Lukas Pöstlberger joined Gilbert.

The six-man Gilbert/Van Avermaet squad roared up the 1.2-km Eikenberg, closing in on the breakaway with 60-km to go. When the junction was made, only AG2R had two riders in the new group. With 55-km remaining the gap was 45-seconds. Sagan, Stannard et al were in danger of the race slipping away, and every move from Sagan, Tony Martin or Degenkolb was marked by Quick Step fellows.


As the gap grew, with Paterberg and Oude Kwaremont looming, it was interesting to note that Orica-Scott’s Luke Durbridge was in the lead group. Durbridge was at the front of Wednesday’s DDV, finishing fourth. Sagan’s chances got slimmer when he was involved in a crash and afterward had to fiddle with his front brake. The narrow roads were taking their toll.


The spritely Gilbert led up and over the Paterberg, and by the time the race reached the 2.2-km, 4.2% Oude Kwaremont, the break was down to seven riders. AG2R’s Oliver Naesen (Belgium) forced the pace on Kwaremont and only compatriots Gilbert and Van Avermaet could follow.

The trio kept up the pace on the Karnemelkbeekstraat climb. Only a section of cobbles and a hill remained in the final 26-km. All three Belgians contributed to keeping the chase well behind. On the last hill, the Tiegemberg, Gilbert hit the gas and Van Avermaet could respond, but it took Naesen a while to find the legs.

With a 1:48 lead at the red kite, the three could afford to play some cat and mouse. Naesen couldn’t stand the tension and went first but Van Avermaet prevailed, just pipping Gilbert. Gilbert was runner-up again two days after coming second to teammate Yves Lampaert in DDV. Durbridge was fourth again.


2017 E3 Harelbeke
1) Greg Van Avermaet (Belgium/BMC) 4:48:17
2) Philippe Gilbert (Belgium/Quick Step) s.t.
3) Oliver Naesen (Belgium/AG2R) s.t.
60) Antoine Duchesne (Canada/Direct Energie) +2:16
66) Hugo Houle (Canada/AG2R) +6:15