Preview: Classic Brugge–De Panne 2025 | Main question: will the wind in De Moeren be strong enough to break the sprinters?

After Milan–San Remo, the cycling calendar continues to unfold across Europe. In Italy, the Coppi and Bartali Cycling Week kicks off, in Spain the tough Tour of Catalonia begins, and in cycling-mad Belgium, we move on to the Classic Brugge–De Panne on Wednesday. IDLProCycling.com guides you through the race in this article!

The Classic Brugge–De Panne is a WorldTour continuation of the stage race Three Days of De Panne–Koksijde, which was held over multiple days until 2017. The final winners under that format included Alexander Kristoff, the late Lieuwe Westra, and Philippe Gilbert, who won the event in 2017.

Since 2018, the race has been held as a one-day event. Elia Viviani won that first edition, followed by Dylan Groenewegen the year after. The 2020 “echelons edition” was won by Yves Lampaert. Sam Bennett and Tim Merlier claimed the mass sprints in 2021 and 2022 respectively, while Jasper Philipsen returns as defending champion. He won after an echelon battle in 2023 ahead of Olav Kooij, and last year beat his rival Merlier in a classic bunch sprint.

Practical information Classic Bruges-De Panne 2025

• Wednesday, March 20, 2024
• Participants
• Classification: WorldTour
  

In this article

• Most recent winners
• Course, weather and times
• Favorites
• TV coverage information

Most recent winners Classic Brugge-De Panne

2024 Jasper Philipsen
2023 Jasper Philipsen
2022 Tim Merlier
2021 Sam Bennett
2020 Yves Lampaert
2019 Dylan Groenewegen
2018 Elia Viviani
2017 Philippe Gilbert
2016 Lieuwe Westra
2015 Alexander Kristoff

Course, weather and times Classic Brugge-De Panne 2025

Brugge–De Panne: the name says it all. The race kicks off in Bruges, the city in West Flanders. Just after midday, the peloton will roll out from the Grote Markt, setting off in a straight line toward the finish town of De Panne, passing through places like Zedelgem, Nieuwpoort, and Veurne. After 67.5 kilometers, the riders will arrive in De Panne for the first time.

From there, over 130 kilometers still remain, spread across three local laps in and around De Panne. These laps are 44 kilometers each and take the peloton through De Moeren—a well-known stretch in West Flanders where the wind often has free rein.

The race finishes in De Panne, not far from Plopsaland. In the narrow city center streets, positioning will be crucial. The final meters on the Zeelaan rise ever so slightly, so timing will also play a big role if the race ends in a bunch sprint on the Belgian coast.

Weather

When checking the weather forecast for Brugge–De Panne, all eyes are on the wind—but on Wednesday, it doesn’t look like it will be a game-changer. Winds are expected to blow from the north at around 11 km/h in the afternoon, with a temperature of about 12°C. Sprinters might quietly be rubbing their hands together.

Times
Start: 12:55 PM (local time) | 7:55 AM (EST)
Finish: approximately 5:45 PM (local time) | 12:55 PM (EST)

Favorites Classic Brugge-De Panne 2025

Last year, Brugge–De Panne turned into a head-to-head showdown between top Belgian sprinters Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Tim Merlier of Soudal Quick-Step. The two came dangerously close to crashing on the Zeelaan in De Panne, where Philipsen ultimately claimed the victory. The Belgian had also won the 2023 edition after an echelon battle, but following a crash in Nokere Koerse, he may be lining up this time slightly less fresh.

Merlier, on the other hand, is clearly in strong form, with multiple victories under his belt. The leader of Jurgen Foré’s team has won stages at the AlUla Tour, UAE Tour, and Classic Brugge–De Panne before, and now hopes to add a prestigious one-day win to his résumé.

That won’t come easy, of course, with two world-class sprinters also on the start list: Jonathan Milan (Lidl–Trek) and Olav Kooij (Visma | Lease a Bike). Milan will look to make up for his team’s lackluster spring classics so far—something he already began to do with two stage wins at Tirreno–Adriatico. Kooij also grabbed a win there and seems hungry to finally take a victory on Belgian soil.

Continue reading below the photo

Jordi Meeus will have a very strong lead-out at Red Bull–BORA–hansgrohe, featuring the Van Dijke brothers, Danny van Poppel, and Laurence Pithie. Meanwhile, Intermarché–Wanty is counting on the tandem of Biniam Girmay and Gerben Thijssen. The Belgian team is still searching for its first win of the year.

Other fast men who may be at the start include Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious), Milan Fretin (Cofidis), Arnaud De Lie (Lotto), Pascal Ackermann (Israel–Premier Tech), Arnaud Démare, Lucca Mozzato (Arkéa–B&B Hotels), Juan Sebastián Molano (UAE Emirates–XRG), Søren Wærenskjold, Alexander Kristoff (Uno-X), Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco AlUla), Fernando Gaviria (Movistar), Casper van Uden, and Fabio Jakobsen (Picnic PostNL).

According to IDLProCycling.com, who are the favorites for Classic Brugge-De Panne 2025?

Top favorites: Tim Merlier (Soudal Quick-Step) and Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek)
Outsiders:Olav Kooij (Visma | Lease a Bike), Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Jordi Meeus (Red Bull-BORA-hansgrohe) and Biniam Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty)
Long shots: Phil Bauhaus (Bahrain Victorious), Milan Fretin (Cofidis), Pascal Ackermann (Israel-Premier Tech), Arnaud Démare (Arkéa - B&B Hotels), Dylan Groenewegen (Jayco AlUla), Gerben Thijssen (Intermarché-Wanty), Soren Waerenskjold (Uno-X) and Fabio Jakobsen (Picnic PostNL)

TV coverage Classic Bruges-De Panne 2025

If you want to watch Brugge–De Panne live on Wednesday, tune in to VRT 1 or Eurosport. The Belgian broadcaster will begin live coverage around 3:00 PM, while Eurosport will be available from the same time via HBO Max. After the finish of the Tour of Catalonia, Eurosport’s main channel will also join in.

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