Amstel Gold Race Report 2024: Tom Pidcock made up for his Amstel Gold Race loss in 2021 to Wout van Aert by the smallest of margins. The INEOS Grenadiers rider crossed to the winning break and then won the sprint from Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates) and Tiesj Benoot (Visma | Lease a Bike). Top favourite, World champion, Mathieu van der Poel was trapped in the bunch to finish 22nd.

*** The full PEZ ‘Race Report’ coming very soon. ***

Amstel’24 final

The 58th Amstel Gold Race was won by Tom Pidcock. After an exciting finale of attacks and counter-attacks, the British rider beat the other escapees: Marc Hirschi and Tiesj Benoot. Mathieu van der Poel finished in the chase group and will now be looking forward to Liège-Bastogne-Liège next Sunday.

The win for Tom Pidcock and by just more than a tyre’s width

The Parcours:
The route is more or less the same as last year, although there is one change. From this year, the Amstel Gold will not start from the Vrijthof, but from the Maastricht Market. The race has been starting from the capital of Limburg since 1998, but since 2019 the riders were presented on the Vrijthof. From this year, the presentation will return to the Market.

2024 Amstel Gold Race map

After the start, the riders head north to Sittard and will have the first obstacle of the day, the Maasberg, a short cobbled climb. The Adsteeg, Bergseweg and Korenweg come later. There is no Cauberg in the early part of the race, as there was before 2023. The famous climb in Valkenburg will be climbed twice instead of three times. The first passage is after 172 kilometres. Between kilometres 95 and 130 there are some longer climbs, including the Camerig, which is one of the longest climbs in South Limburg and the Netherlands, and the one to the Drielandenpunt in Vaals. Then the tough Gulperberg from Gulpen, the climb where Mathieu van der Poel attacked in 2019, on the way to his victory. After the first passage at the finish in Berg en Terblijt, just after the first climb of the Cauberg there are 80 kilometres to go.

2024 Amstel Gold Race profile

The real finale starts with just over 40 kilometres to go with the Gulperberg, now from Gulpen. From the descent on the other side from Gulpen, the riders then go via the Geuzeweg and Cappucijnenweg on narrow, twisting roads to the foot of the Kruisberg. Immediately afterwards there is the Eyserbosweg, after which the Fromberg and the very steep Keutenberg come very quickly. After the Cauberg has been climbed for the second and final time, the final lap starts 16 kilometres before the finish. The Geulhemmerberg and Bemelerberg, which had to be climbed earlier, could be the deciders. The top of the Bemelerberg is 7 kilometres from the finish. Once at the summit, the riders turn left towards Terblijt. Via the Rijnsbergweg to the Sibberweg, where the riders will pass under red flag of the last kilometre. The finish line is on the Rijksweg.

Climbs
1. Maasberg (0.3km at 5.1%) – 241km
2. Adsteeg (0.7km at 4.7%) – 222km
3. Bergseweg (2.5km at 3.3%) – 205km
4. Korenweg (0.9km at 5.7%) – 203km
5. Nijswillerweg (1.3km at 2.7%) – 198km
6. National road N278 (3km at 2.9%) – 189km
7. Wolfsberg (0.km at 3.4%) – 168km
8. Loorberg (1.4km at 5.3%) – 165km
9. Schweibergerweg (2.3km at 4.6%) – 154km
10. Camerig (3.7km at 4.2%) – 147km
11. Drielandenpunt (3km at 3.8%) – 135km
12. Gemmenich (0.9km at 6%) – 130km
13. Vijlenerbos (1.4km at 5.5%) – 127km
14. Eperheide (2.4km at 4.7%) – 118km
15. Gulperberg from Party (0.5km at 9.8%) – 109km
16. Plettenberg (1km at 3.5%) – 105km
17. Eyserweg (2km at 4.6%) – 103 km
18. St. Remigiusstraat (1.4km at 5.2%) – 99km
19. Vrakelberg (0.5km at 7.6%) – 94km
20. Sibbergrubbe (1.8km at 4%) – 86km
21. Cauberg (0.8km at 6.6%) – 81km
22. Geulhemmerberg (0.7km at 6.6%) – 76km
23. Keerderberg (1.8km at 3.6%) – 70km
24. Bemelerberg (1km at 4.4%) – 66km
25. Loorberg (1.4km at 5.3%) – 51km
26. Gulperberg from Gulpen (0.9km at 5.5%) – 43km
27. Kruisberg (0.7km at 7.3%) – 38km
28. Eyserbosweg (1.1km at 7.6%) – 37km
29. Fromberg (1.7km at 3.8%) – 33km
30. Keutenberg (1.6km at 5.2%) – 29km
31. Cauberg (0.8km at 6.6%) – 18km
32. Geulhemmerberg (0.7km at 6.6%) – 13km
33. Bemelerberg (1km at 4.4%) – 7km.

Mathieu van Der Poel Mathieu talking to race organiser Leo van Vliet at the start

Top favourite, Mathieu van der Poel spoke before the start of Amstel Gold Race: “I’m 100%! The battery is certainly full. I haven’t competed in many races, but the races I have competed in are impressive. There are many new guys who have made this their goal. The previous races normally suit me a little better, but it is a lot of twisting and turning and really a kind of roller coaster. So we’ll see.”

One of the possibles: Irish champion, Ben Healy Ben (EF Education-EasyPost)

The Amstel Gold Race, the Netherland’s biggest bike race, has had some big winners in the past: Tadej Pogačar, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel. The World champion was the only one of those three present and was the top favourite for victory. But it wouldn’t be easy as he was up against Tom Pidcock, Ben Healy, Benoît Cosnefroy, Mattias Skjelmose and Matteo Jorgenson.

Could Tom Pidcock go one place higher than 2021?

There were a lot of riders who wanted to be in the early break, but the first attackers were onsuccessful. Eventually four riders managed to take a lead: Tosh Van der Sande (Visma | Lease a Bike), Enzo Leijnse (dsm-firmenich PostNL), Alexander Hajek (BORA-Hansgrohe) and Zeb Kyffin (Tour de Tietema-Unibet).

The first climb of the day

These four leaders worked well together, but on the way to the third climb of the day, the Bergseweg, the news of a serious accident involving a police officer in the women’s race came through and the organisers had to change the course of the men’s race. The Bergseweg had to be removed from the route. The race now went to the Korenweg via a detour. Van der Sande, Leijnse, Hajek and Kyffin managed to increase their lead to nearly 5 minutes.

INEOS Grenadiers were staying to the front

Five minutes was the maximum lead of the four, who were caught just after the Geulhemmerberg, 70 kilometres from the finish. There had already been a lot of action in the peloton. On the first passage of the Cauberg the pace had lifted, but the race stayed together. On the Keerderberg and Bemelerberg, Louis Vervaeke (Soudal Quick-Step) tried to split the race. Vervaeke tried several times and eventually on his third attempt, he escaped with Mikkel Honoré (EF Education-EasyPost) and Paul Lapeira (Decathlon AG2R). These three were given some space, but they only had 30 seconds on the run-up to the Gulperberg. On the short, tough climb, the World champion, Van der Poel, wanted to test his legs, but he didn’t persevere with his effort.

There had to be a windmill

Tosh Van Der Sande, Enzo Leijnse, Alexander Hajek and Zeb Kyffin in the break

The peloton passing the finish line

Vervaeke, Honore and Lapeira got the real final started

Had Healy and Van der Poel missed the move of the day?

Tiesj Benoot Tiesj wanted to be in that front group

Bauke Mollema and Marc Hirschi too

Was it too late for the World champion?

Pidcock, Hirshi and Benoot fought it out in the sprint

It was close, but not as close aas 2021

Amstel Gold Race Result:
1. Thomas Pidcock (GB) INEOS Grenadiers in 5:58:17
2. Marc Hirschi (Sui) UAE Team Emirates
3. Tiesj Benoot (Bel) Visma | Lease a Bike
4. Mauri Vansevenant (Bel) Soudal Quick-Step
5. Paul Lapeira (Fra) Decathlon AG2R La Mondiale
6. Valentin Madouas (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
7. Bauke Mollema (Ned) Lidl-Trek
8. Quentin Pacher (Fra) Groupama-FDJ
9. Pello Bilbao (Spa) Bahrain-Victorious
10. Michael Matthews (Aus) Jayco AlUla at 0:11.

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