Ronde van Drenthe

Ronde van Drenthe is an elite men's and women's professional road bicycle racing event held annually in the Drenthe, Netherlands and sanctioned by the Royal Dutch Cycling Union. The women's event is part of the UCI Women's World Tour, and the men's event is part of the UCI Europe Tour.

History

Men's event

The race was first held in 1960 as an amateur event. Since 2005, the men's event has been part of the UCI Europe Tour. It became a 1.HC race in 2017. Between 2010 and 2015, Dwars door Drenthe was held on the same weekend as the Ronde van Drenthe. In 2011, Ronde van Drenthe and Dwars door Drenthe were held as a combined stage race, with each day retaining its own branding. The events reverted to being separate events in 2012.

Women's event

A women's event was first held in 1998 as Novilon Eurocup, a one-day race. Between 2003 and 2006, this was held as a three day event. In 2007, these three stages were replaced by three one-day races - the Novilon Eurocup, Drenthe 8 of Dwingeloo and Ronde van Drenthe. In 2015, the Novilon Eurocup was held for the last time, and the Drenthe 8 became Drentse 8 van Westerveld. The first edition of Ronde van Drenthe in 2007 was part of the UCI Women's Road World Cup, and the race became part of the UCI Women's World Tour in 2016. Dutch riders Marianne Vos and Lorena Wiebes have both won the Ronde van Drenthe event three times.

Route

The races use generally flat roads in the Drenthe region of the Netherlands, with the challenge being multiple ascents of the VAM-berg – a hill built on a landfill site. The climb is 750m in length with an average gradient of 4.2% and a maximum gradient of 20%. Other difficulties are the ten cobbled sections on the route.

Men's past winners

Source

Women's past winners

Novilon Eurocup

Drentse 8 van Dwingeloo / Acht van Westerveld