Berckmoes denies the sprinters in Geraardsbergen on Renewi Tour stage 3

Jenno Berckmoes (Lotto-Intermarché) claimed victory on stage 3 of the Renewi Tour in Geraardsbergen after holding off the peloton for the final 30km. 

The queen stage of the 2026 edition featured multiple ascents of some of cycling’s most recognised climbs, including the Muur van Geraardsbergen and the Bosberg, before the traditional finish on the Vesten in Geraardsbergen.

There was a big crash on the approach to the Muur with 34km remaining, just as the peloton was about to catch the breakaway. 

The crash caused plenty of splits, and on the climb Berckmoes and Alec Segaert (Bahrain-Victorious) opened a dangerous advantage, as multiple riders tried to attack their way across, but to no avail.

With 18km remaining, Laurence Pithie (Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe) wriggled clear from the chasers, off in lone pursuit of the front duo. 

The Kiwi managed to close within 20 seconds of the leaders, while the peloton’s deficit extended towards 45 seconds inside the final 15km.

Action on the Denderoordberg with 6km remaining saw the front duo’s gap dwindle to less than 10 seconds. 

Under the flamme rouge, the front duo were within sight for the peloton, but Berckmoes found the strength to distance his companion with a stinging acceleration. 

Despite a late charge from behind, Berckmoes had done enough to take his fourth career win, just three seconds ahead of race leader Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Premier Tech) and Olav Kooij (Decathlon CMA CGM).

The Renewi Tour marks Berckmoes’ first race since he suffered a broken collarbone on stage 12 of the Tour de France. 

A three-man powerhouse unit featuring Frederik Frison, Julius Johansen and Michiel Lambrecht formed the day’s breakaway.

Jonathan Milan (Lidl-Trek) abandoned the race in the early phase of the stage, due to the injuries he sustained in the mass crash on stage 2. 

Separate to the Italian champion’s withdrawal, there were a series of crashes in the first half of the stage, including one that involved Movistar duo Davide Formolo and Albert Torres, the latter being forced to abandon.

With the breakaway’s advantage at almost four minutes, Menno Huising (Visma | Lease a Bike) made an ambitious move with 90km remaining, embarking on a long pursuit of the front trio, though he would shortly have company in the form of Louis Vervaeke (Soudal Quick-Step). 

While the duo were able to eat into the advantage of the leaders, bringing the gap below two minutes, they were swept up by the peloton with 57km to go. This sparked multiple attempts from others to form a new chasing group.

Niklas Behrens (Visma | Lease a Bike), Lorenzo Milesi (Movistar) and Martin Svrček (Soudal Quick-Step) were able to break clear, and quickly closed down on the leading trio.

Biniam Girmay (NSN) suffered a crash in the peloton with 42km remaining, but the Eritrean quickly remounted. Moments later, the leading trio were joined by the chasers. 

There was another big crash with 35km remaining involving multiple riders, including Huising, Magnus Sheffield (Netcompany-Ineos), Vlad van Mechelen (Bahrain-Victorious), Tiesj Benoot, Paul Lapeira (Decathlon CMA CGM), and Huub Artz (Lotto-Intermarché)

The crash saw the race split into pieces as the race hit the Muur van Geraardsbergen, passing through the finish line for the second time, as the breakaway was caught. 

Berckmoes and Segaert powered clear on the iconic ascent, opening a solid advantage of nearly 20 seconds.

The duo swept up the bonus seconds available at the green KM with 29km remaining on the cobbles of the Bosberg. 

A lack of cooperation and attacks from within the chase meant that the front duo still held over 20 seconds of an advantage with 20km to go, giving them a hope of holding on.