The modern Classic

STRADE BIANCHE 9 March | Italy | 1.UWT/ 1.WWT

While the torrential rain that turned last year’s stradebianche from their pristine white into sloppy brown sludge may have been grim for the riders, for everyone watching, the downpour helped create one of the season’s most exciting races for both the men’s and women’s pelotons. Tiesj Benoot caught and ditched

Romain Bardet and cyclo-cross world champion Wout Van

Aert before riding to the finish line looking like Marvel’s Sandman.

Anna van der Breggen soloed to her first win in Siena coated in a thick layer of mud. It’s part of the reason why, in the 13 short years since the Italian classic began, Strade Bianche is already carving out its own colourful history. Even if it has a lot of catching up to do compared to its spring contemporaries, the excitement around the 2018 edition was so high it spawned reams of internet space debating whether the race should already be upgraded to monument status. Flanders, for reference, is the ‘newest’ of the five monuments and was first raced in 1913. Strade Bianche may be long off achieving such status, but it is already a firm rider and fan favourite.