Omloop Het Nieuwsblad denied Women’s WorldTour status in 2022

Flanders Classics CEO Tomas Van Den Spiegel confirmed that the UCI denied Omloop Het Nieuwsblad Elite Women a spot on the Women’s WorldTour calendar in 2022. In an interview with Cyclingnews, Van Den Spiegel said he understood the UCI's decision to deny the race a spot on the top-tier calendar as it continues to shape the structure of women's cycling. 

Flanders Classics intends to submit new applications for Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Dwars door Vlaanderen to join the Women's WorldTour in 2023, while aiming to add a seventh race to its current range of six women’s events.

"We requested Omoop Het Nieuwsblad to become WorldTour this year, but I understand that the UCI asked us to be patient because women's cycling is still shaping itself," Van Den Spiegel told Cyclingnews in a phone interview on Friday, the eve of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

"We are ambitious, so for the men's races that are WorldTour, we would like to have a women's WorldTour version. Dwars door Vlaanderen is a WorldTour race for the men, and in the end, we would like it to become Women's WorldTour as well," Van Den Spiegel added when asked about the changes to the status of the Flanders Classics events for 2023. 

“We will add another race, that’s also the goal, we are working on a seventh women’s race.”

Omloop Het Nieuwsblad marks the kick-off to the Spring Classics season with a WorldTour men's event, and a 1.Pro Series women's event held on February 26. 

Although the women's race is not on the top-tier calendar, it annually attracts the top teams and riders because of its prestige as one of the so-called 'Opening Weekend' events.

The event is also the first of Flanders Classics six rounds during the Spring Classics that also include Gent-Wevelgem (WWT),