The 94th edition of the Baloise Belgium Tour starts in Merelbeke-Melle in East Flanders on Wednesday and finishes underneath the Atomium in Brussels on Sunday. With Tim Merlier and Jasper Philipsen, the two fastest Belgians and perhaps the two fastest sprinters in the world will be at the start. Thibau Nys is the man to watch in the queen stage in Durbuy, and all eyes will be on Filippo Ganna for the time trial in Tessenderlo-Ham.
The participants in the 2025 Baloise Belgium Tour will be presented to the public on Kerkplein in Merelbeke-Melle on Tuesday at 5.30 pm. As a stage race in the UCI ProSeries, Belgium’s national cycling tour can count on a strong field of participants. No fewer than 8 of the 20 participating teams are WorldTour teams: Alpecin-Deceuninck, Ineos Grenadiers, Intermarché-Wanty, Lidl-Trek, Movistar, Soudal Quick-Step, Picnic PostNL and UAE Team Emirates.
Soudal Quick-Step and Alpecin-Deceuninck are also bringing their top sprinters to Merelbeke-Melle. On paper, Tim Merlier and Jasper Philipsen have three good chances of a bunch sprint. Starting in Wednesday’s opening stage between Merelbeke-Melle and Knokke-Heist. Four cobbled sections will add some spice to this flat stage, still there is a good chance that the sprint on the Wandelaar will be contested by the entire peloton. Last year, Merlier won that sprint ahead of Philipsen…
The following day, in the Limburg-Antwerp stage from Beringen to Putte (near Mechelen), the riders will again have to tackle a flat course and a few cobbled sections. The cobbles of Peulisbaan in Bonheiden, 7 km from the finish, could be the ideal place for attackers to stage a late breakaway. Or will it (again?) be a sprint duel between Merlier and Philipsen? Obviously, we are not losing sight of other fast men such as Casper van Uden, Alexander Kristoff, Alberto Dainese, Arne Marit or Lukas Kubis. The finish serves as a dress rehearsal for the Belgian championships, which will be organised in Putte in 2027, by Golazo in collaboration with the municipality of Putte and Belgian Cycling.
The rankings are bound to be thoroughly shaken up on Friday. After all, the third stage is an individual time trial of 9.7 km in Tessenderlo-Ham in Limburg, the home town of Jasper Philipsen, nicknamed the “Vlam van Ham” (Flame of Ham). Filippo Ganna, two-time World Time Trial Champion, starts as the clear favourite. Belgian time trial specialists such as Yves Lampaert, Alec Segaert and Rune Herregodts will try to put pressure on the Italian.
Stage 4 is the queen stage, in the heart of the province of Luxembourg. The start and finish are in Durbuy. Along the way, the riders will have to face up to the Champs des Hêtres, Petite Sommes, Rue du Bout, Côte de Hermanne and Mur de Durbuy four times. The finish line is at the top of the Mur de Durbuy, 1,200 metres at an average gradient of 6.2%, including steep sections exceeding 12%. This is a stage that should fit Thibau Nys like a glove and will also have been marked in Florian Vermeersch’s diary.
The final stage on Sunday 22 June, is the now classic ride from Brussels to Brussels. The riders will complete five laps of 37.6 km passing through Wemmel, Merchtem, Meise, Kapelle-op-den-Bos and Grimbergen. The finish in Brussels is on the wide avenues of the Heizel plateau. There is no better place to finish the Belgian national cycling tour than under the Atomium. Last year, victory went to Tim Merlier. The overall winner in 2024 was Norway’s Søren Wærenskjold. The last time a Belgian won the Baloise Belgium Tour was 2021.
Tribute to Ludo Dierckxsens
Golazo, organiser of the Baloise Belgium Tour, will pay tribute to Ludo Dierckxsens throughout the week. The recently deceased former cyclist held numerous positions in the cycling tour: ambassador, safety expert, driver of the race director’s car and, above all, a dedicated employee.
On Tuesday, there will be a minute’s applause for Ludo during the team presentation, and a minute’s silence will be observed the following day at the start of the first stage in Merelbeke-Melle. Before the start of each stage, Ludo’s favourite song, Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now”, will be played over the PA system during the presentation of the riders. And to keep the memory of his characteristic broad smile alive, all the cars in the caravan will be decorated with a sticker saying “Smile for Ludo”.
Proud Title Partner
Liesbeth Laureys, Marketing & Development Director at Baloise: “We are proud to once again be associated with the Belgium Tour, a great cycling festival for young and old. As the main sponsor and one of the largest insurers in Belgium, we want to work with the organisers to create a total experience for participants and supporters. A cycling tour like the Baloise Belgium Tour is very accessible and attracts thousands of people, who in turn come into contact with Baloise through sports.”
STAGE SCHEDULE 2025 BALOISE BELGIUM TOUR:
· Wednesday 18 June 2025: Stage 1: Merelbeke-Melle – Knokke-Heist
· Thursday 19 June 2025: Stage 2: Beringen – Putte (close to Mechelen)
· Friday 20 June 2025: Stage 3: Tessenderlo-Ham – Tessenderlo-Ham (Individual Time Trial)
· Saturday 21 June 2025: Stage 4: Durbuy – Durbuy
· Sunday 22 June 2025: Stage 5: Brussels – Brussels
