That's it, the classics season is underway! This weekend, it's the turn of Omloop Nieuwsblad (yes, the word "Het" was removed from the race title two years ago; before that, the race was called "Omloop Het Nieuwsblad") on Saturday and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne on Sunday.

In this article, you will find all the information about the first race, Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026, with a map of the route in OpenStreetMap and downloadable in Google Earth, the itinerary and profile of the race, as well as the list of starters.

Even more convenient, you'll probably prefer the map of the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026 route in the velowire app!

As is now usually the case, the route for the 2026 Omloop Nieuwsblad has been available in the velowire app (available on mobile or tablet, iOS or Android) since the beginning of the week!

But if you follow velowire, you already know that. If you are going to the event, either for one of the participating teams, for the organization or one of its partners, or simply as a cycling enthusiast at the side of the road, velowire invites you to discover the map of this race in the Maps section of the velowire app for added convenience. This way, you will always have it with you and, as a little bonus, you can view it in full screen and, if you're traveling to get there, display your location on the map and move the map with you, making it easier than ever to get there!

So don't wait any longer and join the hundreds of users of the app by downloading the velowire app from the stores:

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The Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026 route on OpenStreetMap, the race profile, and the schedule

First of all, please note that on the map of the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026 route below, the route has been divided into three parts for ease of reading (as some parts are repeated): the first part is in dark blue, the second in red, and the third and last in green. In order to show the first passages on certain roads in color, the blue section is drawn larger, followed by the red section, while the green section is smaller.

The route is slightly different from last year's, both in terms of the approach to the circuits and the circuits themselves.

After leaving Ghent (Gent), the race first heads east via Merelbeke, Heusden, and Wetteren before heading via Sint-Lievens-Houtem towards Zottegem. They then encounter the first cobbled section, the Paddestraat (1,500 m), before turning left and then left again, following the black arrows to the second cobbled section, Haaghoek (2,000 m), and the first hill, Leberg (1). They then head west/northwest via Eikenberg and Oudenaarde.

At Kruishoutem, they turn right towards Eke, then right again towards the cobbled section of Lange Munte (2500 m), before continuing on the red part of the course. They then follow the same route as before through the cobbled section of Haaghoek and the same hill, Leberg (3). Unlike last year, they then turn right again at Elst and follow the same path to the Eikenberg climb (4), a cobbled hill, before turning right. They then encounter three cobbled sections and a hill, Holleweg (1100 m), the Wolvenberg (5) Kerkgate (800 m) and Jagerij (800 m). They then complete the red loop and continue on to the last part, in green. This is an opportunity to climb the Molenberg (6), partly cobbled, before passing through the cobbled section of Haaghoek and Leberg (7), and this time they continue straight on towards the finish.

Before reaching it, they climb the Berendries (8), Tenbosse (9) and Parikeberg (10) again, before heading towards Geraardsbergen to climb its famous Mur de Grammont (11), which is entirely cobbled, before finding a little further on the last climb of the day, partly cobbled, the Bosberg (12). The race then heads for the finish in Ninove to find out who will win the 2026 Omloop Nieuwsblad and succeed Søren Wærenskjold (Uno-X Mobility).

Below you will find the route schedule, profile, and OpenStreetMap map for the 2026 Omloop Nieuwsblad. Click on the images to enlarge them.

The route of the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026 in Google Earth

Would you prefer to view the route of the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026 in Google Earth, so you can take a virtual flight over this Belgian classic? You can do so by downloading the KML file below:

>> Download the route of the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026 in Google Earth

The list of starters for the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2026

175 riders representing 25 teams of 7 riders each will be at the start of the Omloop Nieuwsblad 2025 tomorrow.

For the moment, it is not final and therefore not available, but as soon as it is, you will find the list of starters here!
What we already know is that Wout van Aert (Team Visma | Lease a Bike) will unfortunately not be taking part, as the Belgian rider has fallen ill and will be replaced by Pietro Mattio. Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) will be there, however, for his very first participation in this race!

door Thomas Vergouwen
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this publication is published in: Classics | OpenStreetMap/Google Maps/Google Earth

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