Do I still like the Cycling Monuments?

When I decided that ok, this Do I still like...? formula might work for me, I started collecting my memories about the recent few editions of all the Monuments and I had to realised that  I havent seen a single one in the last three years.  It might be even more correct to say, that I haven't seen most of the Monuments since the pandemic, but I clearly remember watching the Milano-Sanremo won by Jasper Stuyven, the Ronde finale between Kaspar Asgeeen and Mathieu van der Poel, the edition of Paris-Roubaix won by Dylan van Baarle. Oh, also, when was that edition of Liége-Bastogne-Liége when Julian Alaphilippe celebrated his victory too early? (And of course I have seen that unique Paris-Roubaix edition made me re-think my approach to the Monuments) But otherwise, I have rather clear memories from the season 2019, with all the bigger and smaller one-day races.  Luckily, the idea of building a blog around a rethorical question ( Do I still like the Cycling Monuments? ) see...

Every Momunent is interesting. But every Monument is interesting on a different level.  Here are my personal prefeences from the "less" to the most interesting ones.  5. Liége-Bastogne-Liège For many years the date of Liége-Bastogne-Liège collided with the Budapest Book Festival, an important event for me when I was working as cultural journalist. Thus slowly but surely this one became my less favoutite Monument. Undeserved, of course, because it was not its fault.  Nevertheless, there is a dynamics, or bettee tk say, an arc of the story of the spring classics every year, I consider Paris-Roubaix the peak of it, thus it seems hard to invest to the Ardennes Classics emotionally.  4. Il Lombardia   It's similar with Il Lombardia (or with its traditional name Giro di Lombardia), which is often overlooked because it takes place in October. The older of the two Italian Monuments (the first edition was held in 1905, while the other one, Milano-Sanremo was born in 1907...

Serse, Fausto Coppi's younger brother was born on the 19th of March in 1923 in Castellania, Italy. He started to race professionally in the Bianchi team as the most trusted domestique of his older sibling in 1946.    Nevertheless, he had his own personal success either: he won Paris-Roubaix in 1949, although under disputable circumstances.  Originally, André Mahé crossed the finish line first and Serse won only the sprint among the chasers. But it was told, that a policeman navigated Mahé into the velodrome through a wrong gate. Thus, he violated the rules of the race, but it wasn’t his fault. The superstar Fausto Coppi used his influence wanting the jury to disqualify Mahé and name Serse the winner. After several months of legal quarrel, both Serse Coppi and André Mahé was declared winners of the race.   On 29th of June in 1951, a week before the start of the Tour de France, the Coppi brothers attended the Giro del Piemonte. Only one km to go, three riders c...

Cyrille Van Hauwaert (1883-1974) was one of the most successful Belgian cyclists of the pre-WWI era.  Van Hauwaert’s story reads like a folk legend. A big, strong Flemish farm boy who didn’t speak French, he arrived at the office of La Française cycling team’s directeur sportif, Pierre Pierrard, just two days before the Paris-Roubaix 1907. In his hand was a letter of recommendation from a regional agent of the bicycle manufacturer sponsoring the team.  Despite the late hour and the lack of available pacemakers to support him, Pierrard took a chance, ordering the mechanics to set up a bicycle for the young Belgian. With instructions to keep up with the pack as long as he could, Van Hauwaert exceeded expectations.  In a stunning debut, he finished second, just behind the winner, Georges Passerieu.  Van Hauwaert’s next race was the prestigious Bordeaux-Paris, where he emerged as the top rider, cementing his reputation as a powerful competitor.  The following yea...

One of the most popular vintage Paris-Roubaix images circulating on internet is a picture of Eddy Merckx passing through Trouée d'Arenberg, the 2,3 km long cobbled road considered one of the most hardest and most iconic sector of the "Hell of the North".  The picture was taken most likely in 1969,  dhring the 67th edition of Paris-Roubaix, won by Walter Godefroot. Merckx finished 2nd, two and a half minutes behind the winner.  Trouée d'Arenberg was added to the program oy a year earlier. Jean Stablinski,  former winner of Vuelta a Espana (1958) and several individual stages at Tour de France and Giro d'Italia, who used to work here in the mines before his professional road cycling career proposed the idea of including the road.  Trouée d'Arenberg, partially because of the high possibility of crashes, is usually a turning point in the story of a Paris-Roubaix edition, ofter there is a breakaway group including the favourites is forming right after the peloton l...

While Italian cyclist Franco Bitossi is primarily known for his Grand Tour performances, he is also a two-time Giro di Lombardia winner. Nicknamed "Crazy Heart" ("Cuore Matto") due to a cardiac arrhythmia that often forced him to stop mid-race, he was one of the most remarkable riders of his era. Born in 1940, Bitossi raced professionally from 1961 to 1978, earning a reputation as an aggressive, attack-oriented cyclist and a formidable climber.  Bitossi's first major success came at Giro d’Italia 1964, where he won the King of the Mountains competition, claimed four stage victories, and finished 10th overall. Over the course of his career, he became a Giro legend, amassing 21 stage wins between 1964 and 1975. He won the mountains classification three times (1964, 1965, 1966) and the points classification twice (1969, 1970). His best overall finish at the Giro was 7th place, achieved in 1965 and 1970.  Bitossi also made his mark in the Tour de France, where he wo...

Irish cycling legend Sean Kelly won Paris-Roubaix twice, in 1984 and 1986.  A bit more about Paris-Roubaix in 1985 Besides defending champion Sean Kelly, Francesco Moser ( a three-time winner, ready to equal Roger De Vlaeminck's record) was one of the favourites of the edition that often remembered of its harsh weather conditions. Unfortunately the Italian rider crashed after hitting a hole in a the cobbles damaging his bicycle. The slow repears cost him the chance of contesting the finale.  The most significant move happened with 15 km to go, when a breakaway group of favourites formed including Sean Kelly and Greg LeMond. But Marc Madiot attacked at the Carrefour de l’Arbre sector. According to Sean Kelly, a motorbike caused a crash near the end of the race, disrupting the chase and helping Madiot extend his lead. Without this incident the outcome of the race might have been different.  Madiot arrived alone to thunderous applause; his teammate Bruno Wojtinek c...

 The 117th edition of Milano-Sanremo will be held on  21st March 2026.  This will be also the date of the 2nd edition of Milano-Sanremo Donna Expected stars among others (latest update: 3rd January 2026): Matej Mohorič, Filippo Gianna, Jonathan Milan, Mads Pedersen, Tim Wellens, Tadej Pogačar. TOP 1O of 2025 1 Mathieu van der Poel (NED) Alpecin–Deceuninck 6h 22' 53" 2 Filippo Ganna (ITA) Ineos Grenadiers + 0" 3 Tadej Pogačar (SLO) UAE Team Emirates XRG + 0" 4 Michael Matthews (AUS) Team Jayco–AlUla + 43" 5 Kaden Groves (AUS) Alpecin–Deceuninck + 43" 6 Magnus Cort (DEN) Uno-X Mobility + 43" 7 Mads Pedersen (DEN) Lidl–Trek + 43" 8 Olav Kooij (NED) Visma–Lease a Bike + 43" 9 Matteo Trentin (ITA) Tudor Pro Cycling Team + 43" 10 Fred Wright (GBR) Team Bahrain Victorious + 43" Winners of the last ten editions  2016 Arnaud Démare FDJ 2017 Michał Kwiatk...

Who else could be the first cyclist of the series  about Monument winners than the epitome of early day road cycling races, Hippolyte Aucouturier (1876-1944). The image of a French cyclist in a striped shirt may feel like a cliché, but sometimes stereotypes hold a surprising amount of truth. Recognizable for his distinctive outfit, Hippolyte Aucouturier  also found considerable success during his career, active from 1900 to 1908 as an independent rider.   He claimed victory at the 1903 Paris-Roubaix under rather chaotic circumstances. Traditionally, riders switched bikes upon entering the velodrome, but when Aucouturier arrived alongside Claude Chaperon, Chaperon mistakenly grabbed Louis Trousselier's bike. By the time he realized and corrected his mistake, Aucouturier had surged ahead, winning the race.   Following this victory, Aucouturier was one of the favorites for the inaugural Tour de France. He abandoned the first stage due to stomach pains, bu...

The Monunents are the five most prestigious one-day races in the world of professional road cycling competitions. They are old, they are long, they have been always popular. They carrying the memory how this sport was born more than a century ago.  During the recent few years I found myself in a bit of a distress when it comes to the Monuments, I'm no longer that enthusiastic about them as I was earlier (as the matter of fact, recently I started seeing this sport through a much more critical lense) - that's why the unusual title of the blog.  Finish line of Milano-Sanremo 2025 (source: gazzetta.it) Anyway, as someone who used to blogg about road cycling in the recent two decades, I know how useful posts like this one intented to be can actually be.  So, here are the dates of the five Monuments in 2026 Milano-Sanremo 21 March 2026 Ronde van Vlaanderen 5 April 2026 Paris-Roubaix 12 April 2026 Liege-Bastogne-Liege 26 April 2026 Il Lombardia 10 October 2026

Strade Bianche is one of the greatest success stories in modern road cycling. It's a race that cyclists, media, and fans alike have embraced with enthusiasm. Held on the scenic roads of Tuscany, its stunning backdrop almost guarantees global appeal. What makes it unique are the gravel sectors — the signature white roads that inspired the race's name — aligning with the rising trend of gravel racing. Iconic image of Strade Bianche (source:giroditalia.it)  It's no surprise that more and more cycling enthusiasts now refer to it as the "6th Monument."  After all, this is how the original five Monuments gained their status: by popular recognition. The Monuments (Liège-Bastogne-Liège, Paris-Roubaix, Giro di Lombardia, Milano-Sanremo, and Ronde van Vlaandere) are among the oldest and most prestigious one-day races in cycling, rich with history. In some cases, like Paris-Roubaix, they even carry memories of significant historical events beyond the sport. Established in ...

Road cycling enthusiasts know very well, that there was no Paris-Roubaix in 2020. The „Hell of the North” was the only big road cycling event facing such difficulties to be organised during the pandemic that it had to be cancelled for that year, and it was held in autumn in the next one.  Thus the almost 1000-day hiatus between two Paris-Roubaix editions became symbolic in several ways in the most recent history of road cycling.  For many years, Paris-Roubaix used to be my favourite race. I assume that the level of intensity made it to me that special. From all the five Monuments, this one encapsulated the heroic self-representation, such an important element in the early days of this sport, the most.  The cobblestones.  The dusty or muddy faces.  Paris-Roubaix 2001 Even the crashes look sometimes like Renaissance or Baroque paintings.  And then came that cold and wet October Sunday in 2021, when I had to ask from myself:  what the hell I’m watching ex...

There is a reason, obviously, why they called that. The five most prestigious one-day races, traditionally called Monuments, are carrying history. Sometimes not just road cycling history but they also remind us of pivotal moments from the history of Europe in the 20th century.  In 1981, Bernard Hinault delivered a spectacular Paris-Roubaix victory fuelled rather with anger and frustration. After the race he called Paris-Roubaix a bullshit All the five Monuments was born in the first great era of road cycling competitions ended with the outbreak of Word War I. Liege-Bastogne-Liege , a classic amateur cycling tourist adventure in 1892, Paris-Roubaix , a typical French cycling enterprise in 1896, the two Italian (more precisely, and not coincidently at all, two Lombardian) events, Giro di Lombardia in 1905, Milano-Sanremo 1907, and finally, Ronde van Vlaanderen in 1913, these latter three following the French recipe too, as newspapers were heavily involved in the founding process o...