Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes

The men's race was first held in 1892, making it the oldest of the five monuments of the European professional road cycling calendar.[1] The inaugural women's race was held in 2017, and was won by Olympic champion Anna van der Breggen.[2]

The race generally marks the end of the entire spring classics season, as the one-day races give way to longer stage races; Liége is followed in the women's calendar by La Vuelta Femenina.

With the reboot of the Amstel Gold Race for Women and the creation of a women's Liège–Bastogne–Liège in 2017, the women's season has the same trio of Ardennes classics as the men's. Both races are held on Sundays mid-April, in addition to La Flèche Wallonne Féminine, which has been on the women's calendar since 1998.[3]

The race is approximately half the distance of the men's event – around 130 to 140 kilometres – starting in Bastogne, from where it heads north to finish in Liège. The route has generally used the same route as the men's race into Liège – using climbs such as Côte de La Redoute, Côte des Forges and Côte de la Roche aux Faucons.[1][4] Since 2019, the race has finished in Liège, and therefore Côte de Saint-Nicolas has been omitted. The parcours, with its multiple short, hard climbs, is seen as friendlier terrain for general classification riders and climbers than the gravelled and cobbled classics of early spring.[1]

• Official website