By Dave Campbell — Classic is perhaps the most overused term in cycling, with the oldest and most prestigious Classics known monuments. Less prestigious or historic events are either referred to as semi-classics or simply classics. All are long, difficult, and full of history. Every rider dreams of winning a classic, but especially a prestigious one. Most would agree, however, that the spring classics consist of the four spring monuments: Milan-San Remo (Italy), Tour of Flanders (Belgium), Paris-Roubaix (France), and Liège-Bastogne-Liège (Belgium) as well as Ghent-Wevelgem, Flèche Wallonne (both Belgian), and the Amstel Gold (Netherlands). Just seven chances each spring to join the legends.
Q1. Of the spring monuments, American men have finished on the podium of three of these four storied races. Which of the March and April Classics have not had a Yank finish in the top three?
Q2. American women have had much more success in the spring classics than their male counterparts, despite the races only being in existence for a brief period of time. Three American women have in fact won spring classics. Can you name them?
Q3. Modern Classics riders do either a “Northern Classics” program (Cobbles) or an “Ardennes Classics” program (hills). Virtually no one today attempts both, with one notable exception: Mathieu Van der Poel did in 2024, earning a remarkable third in Liège after winning Roubaix and Flanders. Tadej Pogačar has rumbled about trying it, but this seemed doubtful after his crash at Strade Bianche. MVDP, however, so far has been the exception that proves the rule, as contending in both no longer seems possible. Who was the last rider to win at Roubaix on the cobbles and then go on to victory in the climbs of the Ardennes.
Q4. Which rider has won the most Spring Classics is easy for anyone who follows the history of the sport…Eddy Merckx! He in fact won a staggering 25 spring classics: Milan San Remo (7x), Tour of Flanders (2x), Paris Roubaix (3x), Liège (5x), Ghent-Wevelgem (3x), Flèche Wallonne (3x), Amstel Gold (2x). He won every one of them and more than once each! So, the real question is, who has won the second most spring classics?
Q5. On the women’s side, which rider has won the most spring classics? Note: The women’s classics are much more recent than the men’s and one (La Primavera aka Milan-San Remo only had a seven-year run and will return this year) but…give it a go!
For answers, see page 2 below.
