Double Olympic champion Remco Evenepoel announced on Wednesday that he will take part in the prestigious Tour of Flanders one-day classic this weekend.
The addition of the 2022 world champion to the start list for one of Belgium's most important races is a boon for organisers, who can already count on a star-studded field including reigning champion Tadej Pogacar, three-time winner Mathieu van der Poel and Belgian hope Wout van Aert.
"Flanders, are you ready?" Evenepoel wrote on his Instagram account to announce the news.
It will be the first time that the former Vuelta a Espana winner tackles the Flanders cobbles.
"If this isn't an April Fool's joke, then it's wonderful news because the Tour of Flanders deserves the best possible line-up," said Van Aert ahead of Wednesday's Across Flanders one-day classic.
The Belgian leader of the Red Bull-BORA team, Evenepoel is more known for his prowess in the punchy Ardennes classics, such as the Liege-Bastogne-Liege Monument race he has won twice.
This will be his first participation at a cobbled Monument classic, having never raced Paris-Roubaix either.
Remco Evenepoel confirms his participation at the 2026 Tour of Flanders 🚴♂️
— Cycling on TNT Sports (@cyclingontnt) April 1, 2026
The Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe rider will make his debut at the cobbled classic 🪨 pic.twitter.com/lbdD3pIdoJ
Evenepoel, who on Sunday finished the week-long Tour of Catalonia in fifth place overall, had not been due to race again until the Amstel Gold race, an Ardennes classic which takes place two weeks after Flanders.
While he has never raced a major cobbled classic, Evenepoel is from the village of Schepdaal in Flanders and has spent many hours training on the region's cobbles and short climbs that are a feature of Sunday's 271km race.