Liège–Bastogne–Liège facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Liège–Bastogne–Liège

Liège–Bastogne–Liège logo.svg
Race details
Date	Late April
Region	Wallonia, Ardennes, Belgium
English name	Liège–Bastogne–Liège
Local name(s)	Liège–Bastogne–Liège
Nickname(s)	La Doyenne ("The Old Lady")
Discipline	Road
Competition	UCI World Tour
Type	One-day Classic
Organiser	Amaury Sport Organisation
Race director	Christian Prudhomme
History
First edition	1892 (1892)
Editions	110 (as of 2024)
First winner	Léon Houa (BEL)
Most wins	Eddy Merckx (BEL) (5 wins)
Most recent	Tadej Pogačar (SLO)

Liège–Bastogne–Liège is a famous one-day bicycle race in Belgium. It's also known as La Doyenne, which means "The Old Lady" in French. This race first happened in 1892, making it the oldest of the five biggest "Monuments" in professional road cycling. It usually takes place every year in late April.

The race goes through the Ardennes region of Belgium, starting in Liège, going to Bastogne, and then returning to Liège. It's known as one of the toughest one-day cycling events in the world. This is because it's very long and has many challenging hills. The Belgian rider Eddy Merckx has won the race five times, more than anyone else.

Liège–Bastogne–Liège is part of the UCI World Tour, which is a series of top cycling races. It's the last race in a group called the Ardennes classics, which also includes the Amstel Gold Race and La Flèche Wallonne. These races are organized by the same group that puts on the famous Tour de France.

This race often marks the end of the spring cycling season. Its course, with many short but tough climbs, is great for riders who are good at climbing hills. In 2017, a women's version of the race, called Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes, was started.

The Race's Story

How Liège–Bastogne–Liège Began

Like many old cycling races, Liège–Bastogne–Liège was first organized by a newspaper. The race has always stayed in the southern, French-speaking, and hilly part of Belgium.

Léon Houa won the first three Liège–Bastogne–Liège races in the late 1800s.

The very first race was for amateur riders in 1892. It went from Spa to Bastogne and back, covering about 250 kilometers. Back then, bicycles were expensive, so cycling was a sport for wealthy people. 33 Belgian riders started the race, but only 17 finished. The halfway point was the train station in Bastogne, which was handy for race officials. Some tired riders even took the train back to Spa!

Léon Houa, from Liège, won that first race after riding for almost 11 hours. He won again the next year. In 1894, the first race for professional riders was held, and the bikes went faster. Houa won for a third time. After these first three races, the event wasn't held for 14 years. When it returned, it was sometimes only for amateur or semi-professional riders.

The race started again in 1908, with the start and finish in Liège for the first time. It was mostly won by Belgian riders, but soon, riders from Flanders, the northern part of Belgium, started to win more often.

Becoming a Classic Race

Liège–Bastogne–Liège was stopped during World War I and II, but it came back in 1945. It started to attract famous European cyclists. In the 1950s, Belgian rider Fred De Bruyne won the race three times in a row. In 1957, two riders were declared winners because of a confusing situation where one rider crossed a closed railway crossing.

In 1959, Liège–Bastogne–Liège became part of the Super Prestige competition, which made it one of the most important cycling events of the year.

Eddy Merckx won Liège–Bastogne–Liège five times, which is a record.

The late 1960s saw the rise of cycling legend Eddy Merckx. He won the race five times, including three wins in a row. In 1971, the race was held in terrible weather with snow and cold. Merckx made a solo attack far from the finish line and won one of his most famous victories. He is still the record holder for wins in La Doyenne.

French cycling star Bernard Hinault won the race twice, both times in very bad weather. In 1980, he won in a snowstorm and freezing temperatures, which was an epic race.

In the 1980s, Italian rider Moreno Argentin won the race four times, almost matching Merckx's record. He also won the sister race, La Flèche Wallonne, three times, earning him the nickname King of the Ardennes.

Changes to the Finish Line

In 1990, the race organizers teamed up with the group that runs the Tour de France. This led to big changes in the race course. The start and finish moved to different places in Liège, and five new climbs were added.

In the late 1990s, Italian riders Michele Bartoli and Paolo Bettini each won the race twice. In 1999, young Belgian rider Frank Vandenbroucke surprised everyone with his victory.

A group of riders during the Liège–Bastogne–Liège race in 2007.

In 2005, Kazakh rider Alexander Vinokourov and German Jens Voigt broke away from the main group very early and managed to stay ahead to the finish, with Vinokourov winning.

More recently, Spanish rider Alejandro Valverde has won the race four times.

The Race Route

Today's Course

The route map of the 2011 Liège–Bastogne–Liège race.

The Liège–Bastogne–Liège route goes through two provinces in Belgium: Liège and Luxembourg. The race is usually about 250–260 kilometers long. It starts in the center of Liège, goes south for about 95 kilometers to Bastogne, and then winds back for about 163 kilometers to Liège.

The second half of the race has many tough climbs, like the Stockeu, Haute-Levée, La Redoute, and the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons. The last part of the race changes from quiet countryside to the city areas of Liège.

How the Course Has Changed

Until 1991, the race finished in the center of Liège. In 1992, the finish moved to Ans, a suburb of Liège. A steep climb called the Côte de Saint-Nicolas was added near the end, along with a final climb to the finish line in Ans. This change meant that riders who were strong climbers and could sprint uphill often waited until the very end to make their move.

The route usually has small changes each year, with some climbs removed and others added. However, the traditional ending with the Côte de La Redoute, Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons, and Côte de Saint-Nicolas was used for 27 years.

In 2019, the finish line moved back to the center of Liège. This meant the Côte de Saint-Nicolas and the final climb to Ans were removed. Now, the Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons is the last main climb, about 13 kilometers from the finish.

What Makes the Race Hard

The Challenge

The elevation profile of the 2012 Liège–Bastogne–Liège race, showing all the climbs.

Liège–Bastogne–Liège is considered one of the hardest one-day races in the world. This is because it's very long and has many steep climbs one after another. In every race, there are about a dozen climbs, all different in length and steepness, giving riders many chances to attack.

A cycling magazine once said that this race is "probably the toughest classic" because the climbs are long, steep, and come very often in the last part of the race.

Four-time winner Moreno Argentin explained that riders who win Liège need incredible stamina. He said the climbs are very tough, especially after riding for over 200 kilometers. He also mentioned that Liège is a race where riders are slowly eliminated, and you need to be strong, smart, and strategic to win.

Key Climbs

The start of the Côte de La Redoute climb in Aywaille.

The main climbs in the 2012 Liège–Bastogne–Liège race.

The most famous hill is the Côte de La Redoute. It's 2.0 kilometers long with an average steepness of 8.9%, and some parts are over 20% steep! For a long time, La Redoute, which is about 40 kilometers from the finish, was where the race-winning attacks often happened. However, in recent years, many riders can keep up on this climb, and the favorites often wait until closer to the end to make their move.

In modern cycling, the most important parts of the race often happen on the very last climbs. The Côte de Saint-Nicolas used to be the last official climb, with its top just 6 kilometers from the finish in Ans. This climb is unusual because it's in the industrial suburbs of Liège, not in the forested hills of the Ardennes.

Since the finish moved back to Liège in 2019, the Côte de Saint-Nicolas is no longer on the route. Now, the key climbs are the Côte de la Redoute, Côte des Forges, and Côte de la Roche-aux-Faucons.

Here are some of the climbs from a recent edition:

Weather Challenges

The weather in April can be very unpredictable. The race has often been affected by harsh conditions, including heavy snowfall in 1919, 1957, 1980, and 2016. The 1980 race was especially tough: snow fell from the start, and temperatures were near freezing. Commentators even called it 'Neige-Bastogne-Neige' (Snow-Bastogne-Snow). Bernard Hinault attacked with 80 kilometers to go and finished almost 10 minutes ahead of everyone else. Only 21 riders finished that race out of 174 starters.

Ardennes Classics Series

Liège–Bastogne–Liège is the final race in the Ardennes classics series. This series also includes La Flèche Wallonne. Both races are organized by the same group, ASO.

For a long time, the Flèche Wallonne ("Walloon Arrow") was considered more important than Liège–Bastogne–Liège, showing how a race's prestige can change over time. At one point, both races were held on back-to-back days, known as Le Weekend Ardennais.

Only seven riders have won both races in the same year:

• Spaniard Alejandro Valverde (three times: 2006, 2015, 2017)
• Swiss Ferdinand Kübler (twice: 1951, 1952)
• Belgians Stan Ockers (1955), Eddy Merckx (1972), and Philippe Gilbert (2011)
• Italians Moreno Argentin (1991) and Davide Rebellin (2004)

In 2011, Belgian rider Philippe Gilbert won Liège–Bastogne–Liège. This completed an amazing streak of four classic race victories in just ten days! He had already won the Brabantse Pijl, Amstel Gold Race, and La Flèche Wallonne.

Race Winners

Riders with Multiple Wins

Active riders are in italic.

Wins	Rider	Years
5	Eddy Merckx (BEL)	1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975
4	Moreno Argentin (ITA)	1985, 1986, 1987, 1991
	Alejandro Valverde (ESP)	2006, 2008, 2015, 2017
3	Léon Houa (BEL)	1892, 1893, 1894
	Alphonse Schepers (BEL)	1929, 1931, 1935
	Fred De Bruyne (BEL)	1956, 1958, 1959
2	Louis Mottiat (BEL)	1921, 1922
	René Vermandel (BEL)	1923, 1924
	Richard Depoorter (BEL)	1943, 1947
	Prosper Depredomme (BEL)	1946, 1950
	Ferdinand Kübler (SUI)	1951, 1952
	Joseph Bruyère (BEL)	1976, 1978
	Bernard Hinault (FRA)	1977, 1980
	Seán Kelly (IRL)	1984, 1989
	Michele Bartoli (ITA)	1997, 1998
	Paolo Bettini (ITA)	2000, 2002
	Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ)	2005, 2010
	Remco Evenepoel (BEL)	2022, 2023
	Tadej Pogačar (SLO)	2021, 2024

Wins by Country

Wins	Country
61	Belgium
12	Italy
6	Switzerland
5	France
4	Netherlands  Spain
3	Ireland  Kazakhstan  Luxembourg  Slovenia
2	Denmark  Germany
1	Australia  Russia  United States

Liège–Bastogne–Liège for Women

In 2017, the Liège–Bastogne–Liège Femmes race was started for women riders. It's part of the UCI Women's World Tour. This followed the lead of other women's races like La Flèche Wallonne Féminine and the Women's Amstel Gold Race. The first women's Liège–Bastogne–Liège race was won by Olympic champion Anna van der Breggen from the Netherlands.

The women's race is about half the length of the men's race, at 135.5 kilometers. It doesn't start in Liège but in Bastogne. From there, it heads north past Liège to finish in Ans, just like the men's race used to. The route includes four main climbs: the Côte de la Vecquée, Côte de La Redoute, Côte de la Roche aux faucons, and Côte de Saint-Nicolas. The top of the last climb, Saint-Nicolas, is about 5.5 kilometers from the finish line.

Images for kids

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  The climbs in the 2012 Liège–Bastogne–Liège edition

See also

In Spanish: Lieja-Bastoña-Lieja para niños