Defending champion Elisa Longo Borghini has been forced to abandon the 2025 Tour of Flanders following a crash in the early stages of the race. The Italian rider, who had been in excellent form this season, was involved in a pile-up that also brought down fellow competitors Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck), Simone Boilard (Uno-X Mobility), and Martina Alzini (Cofidis).
After initially remounting her bike and attempting to catch up, Longo Borghini was unable to continue and eventually pulled out of the race. Her team, UAE Team ADQ, has not yet issued a statement regarding her condition.
The crash comes just days after Longo Borghini secured a commanding victory at Dwars Door Vlaanderen, a result that had been seen as a redemption following her near-miss at Milan-San Remo earlier this year. Reflecting on her Dwars win, she described it as a form of “revenge” after being overtaken just 150 meters from the line in Milan.
“I was very hungry for victory,” Longo Borghini said after Dwars. “I came here looking for nothing less than that. I really wanted to prove that I was strong.”
The victory in Belgium marked a significant turnaround for Longo Borghini, who despite early season success—winning the UAE Tour in February—had been unable to claim a win on European soil in 2025 until then.
When asked if the frustration from previous setbacks had fueled her victory, she acknowledged the power of bouncing back. “I’m always bouncing back from a big disappointment, usually. So that’s proof that sometimes it works,” she said.
Longo Borghini, a two-time Tour of Flanders champion, was one of the race favorites for today’s monument. A third win in Flanders would have placed her in an elite group, including legends like Judith Arndt, Lotte Kopecky, Annemiek Van Vleuten, and Mirjam Melchers, for the most victories in the prestigious race.
At the time of writing, the severity of Longo Borghini’s injuries remains unclear. Her next scheduled race is the Amstel Gold Race later this month, but it remains uncertain whether she will be fit to race.
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