The classic cycle races are the most prestigious one-day professional road cycling races in the international calendar. Some of these events date back to the 19th century. They are normally held at roughly the same time each year. The five most revered races are often described as the cycling monuments.
Since the early 2000s, many classic events have started women's races, now part of the UCI Women's World Tour.
Problems with definition
Although cycling fans and sports media eagerly use the term "classic", there is no clear consensus about what constitutes a classic cycling race. UCI, the international governing body of cycling, has no mention at all of the term in its rulings. This poses problems to define the characteristics of these races and makes it impossible to make precise lists. Several criteria are used to denote the importance of a cycling race: date of creation, historical importance and tradition, commercial importance, location, level of difficulty, level of competition field, etc. However, many of these paradigms tend to shift over time and are often opinions of a personal nature. One of the few objective criteria is the official categorization of races as classified by the UCI, although this is not a defining feature either, as many fans dispute the presence of some of the highest-categorized races and some older races are not included in the UCI World Tour.
Because of the growing ambiguity and inflation of the term "classic", the much younger term "monument" was introduced at the end of the 20th century to denote the five most revered of the classic cycling races.[1][2]
Classic cycle races
Only Rik Van Looy could win all 8 original classics.
Until the 1980s there were originally eight recognised classics, the five Monuments (see Cycling Monuments below) plus La Flèche Wallonne, Paris–Brussels and Paris–Tours. Due to various traffic and organizational problems these events came and went in various guises (for example, Paris–Tours became Blois–Chaville, before returning in its current form). Paris–Brussels disappeared altogether between 1967 and 1976. Flèche Wallonne was always on the Saturday before Liege–Bastogne–Liege (it was known as The Ardennes Weekend), before being shortened and moved to the preceding Wednesday. The remaining five then became known as the 'Monuments'.
Season openers are usually not regarded as highly as other classics apart from the Omloop, but receive a lot of attention because of their position early in the season, typically in February.
Strade Bianche – race that includes sections of strade bianche gravel roads. Despite its relatively short history, the Strade Bianche has quickly gained significant prestige, the uniqueness of its parcours sometimes drawing comparison with Paris-Roubaix. First held in 2007. By the mid 2020s, media and riders discussed the possibility of the race being elevated to a "cycling monument" in future.[3][4][5]
Milano–Torino – first run in 1876, the race has sometimes been held in the autumn and had some continuity problems due to financial problems but returned to the UCI calendar in 2012. From 2022, the race was moved from autumn to spring, before Milan-San Remo. It is the oldest classic race in the world.[6]
Milan–San Remo – the first monument of the year, its Italian name is La Primavera ("The Spring") or La classicissima. This race is normally held on the Saturday closest to the vernal equinox. First run in 1907. It is the longest classic by distance, and is often considered a 'sprinter's classic' despite a number of notable climbs, as it tends toward bunch sprint finishes.
Trofeo Alfredo Binda – one of the oldest and most established races in the women's calendar, having first been held in 1974, and part of the Women's World Tour since it was founded in 2016, and unusual at that level in being without a male equivalent.[7][8][9]
E3 Harelbeke – the first of the "Spring Classics" in Flanders, first held in 1958.
Gent–Wevelgem – first raced in 1934, in recent years held on the Sunday between Milan–San Remo and the Tour of Flanders.
Tour of Flanders – (Ronde van Vlaanderen) is normally raced in early April, first held in 1913.
Paris–Roubaix – La Reine ("Queen of the Classics") or l'Enfer du Nord ("The Hell of the North") is traditionally held one week after the Tour of Flanders, and was first raced in 1896. Arguably the most famous of all the classics, the race is dominated by multiple pavé sections, and ends in a circuit of the Roubaix Velodrome.
Amstel Gold Race – normally held mid-April, it is the first of the three Ardennes Classics or hill classics, one week after Paris–Roubaix. First run in 1966.
La Flèche Wallonne – the Walloon Arrow is the second Ardennes Classic, since 2004 held mid-week between the Amstel Gold Race and Liège–Bastogne–Liège. First run in 1936.
Liège–Bastogne–Liège – La Doyenne, the oldest monument, was first raced in 1892. It is the third Ardennes Classic, held in late April, one week after the Amstel Gold Race. A race characterized by multiple short, steep climbs, it is often considered the most physically arduous of the classics, rewarding stamina and explosiveness.
Summer classics
After Liège, the one-day races begin to give way to the stage races leading to the Grand Tours between May and September. Although there are no 'monuments' in this period, some important summer classics are held from July to September.
Coppa Bernocchi – held on Sunday a day after Coppa Ugo Agostoni
Tre Valli Varesine – the Three valleys of Varese, held on Tuesday 4 days before Giro di Lombardia since 2015[11]
Bretagne Classic – held on a Sunday in late August on a circuit near the small Breton village of Plouay, traditionally known as Grand Prix Ouest France – Plouay
Grand Prix de Fourmies – held since 1928 in Northern France, held on a Sunday in the first half of September since 1976, a week or two after Bretagne Classic[12]
Laurentian Classics – two one-day races in Canada, named after the Saint Lawrence River that runs through Quebec, organized since 2010
Following the end of the Vuelta a Espana in early September, the nature of the racing once more tends towards the one-day races. The autumn classics are held from September to November.
Paris–Brussels – First held in 1893, since 2013 renamed the Brussels Cycling Classic and only run on Belgian territory
Paris–Tours – known as the "Sprinters' Classic", first race in 1896. Since 2018, the route has included gravel sectors in vineyards.
Giro dell'Emilia – one week before the Giro di Lombardia, one of the hardest Classics on the calendar, with the famous San Luca, Bologna, circuit.
Giro di Lombardia – also known as the "Race of the Falling Leaves", first held in 1905 as Milano–Milano. Considered the biggest Autumn Classic in cycling, and the only post-Spring Monument, it is often referred to as the 'climber's classic' in comparison to the early spring 'sprinter's classic', Milan–San Remo, with significant long climbs throughout, including the iconic Madonna del Ghisallo.
The Monuments are generally considered to be the oldest, hardest and most prestigious one-day events in cycling.[16][17][2][18] They each have a long history and specific individual characteristics. They are currently the one-day races in which most points can be earned in the UCI World Tour.[18]
Milan–San Remo – the first major Classic of the year, its Italian name is La Primavera (the spring), because it is held in late March. First run in 1907, it is considered the sprinter's classic. This race is particularly long (ca. 300km (190mi)) though mostly flat along the Ligurian coast, enabling sprinters to compete.
Tour of Flanders – the Ronde van Vlaanderen in Dutch/Flemish, the first of the Cobbled classics, is raced every first Sunday of April. It was first held in 1913, making it the youngest of the five Monuments. Notable for the narrow short hills (hellingen) in the Flemish Ardennes, usually steep and cobbled, the route forces the best riders to continually fight for space at the front. The course changes slightly every year: since 2017 the race starts in Antwerp and since 2012 finishes in Oudenaarde.
Paris–Roubaix – the Queen of the Classics or l'Enfer du Nord ("The Hell of the North") is raced traditionally one week after the Tour of Flanders and is the last of the cobbled races. It was first organized in 1896. The flattest of the monuments, its decisive sites are the many long sections of pavé (roads of large, rough cobblestones) making it hard on the racers' bodies. Crashes and punctures are common, and considered a feature of the racing. It is considered by many to be the most heroic one-day cycling event of the year.[citation needed] The race finishes on the iconic Roubaix Velodrome. At the end of the race, riders are usually covered in dirt or mud in what is considered one of the most brutal tests of mental and physical endurance in all of cycling.
Liège–Bastogne–Liège – held in late April. La Doyenne, the oldest Classic, is the last of the Ardennes classics and usually the last of the spring races. It was first organized in 1892 as an amateur event; a professional edition followed in 1894. It is a long and arduous race notable for its many sharp hills in the Ardennes and uphill finish in the industrial suburbs of Liège, favouring climbers and even grand tour specialists.
Giro di Lombardia – the Autumn Classic or the Race of the Falling Leaves, is held in October or late September. Initially organized as Milano–Milano in 1905, it was called the Giro di Lombardia (Tour of Lombardy) in 1907 and Il Lombardia in 2012. It is notable for its hilly and varied course around the Como Lake with a flat finish in Bergamo or a hilly finish in Como. In 2012 it had a new, earlier date at the end of September, one week after the World Championship. From 2013 to 2017 it was held in the first week of October. Since 2018 it has been held on a Saturday in the second week of October. It is often won by climbers with a strong sprint finish.
Women's events
Since the early 2000s, many classic events have started women's races, now part of the UCI Women's World Tour. These events are often held on the same day or on the same weekend of the men's races.
↑ Robinson, Joe (2021-03-08). "The day Strade Bianche finally became a Monument". Cyclist. Retrieved 2025-03-19. the concept of a Monument was only brought to fruition in the mid-1990s by then UCI President Hein Verbruggen and certain race organisers as a marketing tool to better promote certain races.
↑ Magazine, Peloton (2022-03-21). "It's More Than Just the Racing: Why Trofeo Binda Is Always a Special Race". Velo. Retrieved 2025-03-20. First run in 1974, it's one of the longest-running races on the women's calendar [...] Binda is one of the only one-day races on the women's calendar that isn't attached to a men's race.
↑ O'Shea, Sadhbh (2023-03-17). "Are there monuments in women's cycling, and what are they?". Velo. Retrieved 2025-01-29. When considering women's cycling's oldest and most special races [...] Trofeo Alfredo Binda would have to be on that list. It is far and away the oldest event on the women's calendar with its first edition held way back in 1974.
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