I went to the Tour of Flanders and was shocked by the exodus of people before the women's race went past

The rush to leave the Kwaremont after the men's race was depressing, and revealing. We all need to do more to support women's cycling

Lotte Kopecky on the Oude Kwaremont
(Image credit: Getty Images)

At 4.05pm on Sunday, Tadej Pogačar powered up the Oude Kwaremont, racing away from his rivals on the fabled cobbled climb near the end of the Tour of Flanders. As he was catching Mads Pedersen and taking the race away from Mathieu van der Poel, the Slovenian was hemmed in by thousands of fans screaming his name, cheering him on, desperate to catch a glimpse - and it was a glimpse, as he flew by - celebrating the biggest Belgian race of the year.

As soon as the 100 or so riders still in the race passed, the crowds surged towards the big screen to watch the denouement of the men's race, which happened at about 4.27pm, to see the UAE Team Emirates rider make history, watch the sprint for third place, and refill their glasses.

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Adam Becket
News editor

Adam is Cycling Weekly’s news editor – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling, he's happy. Before joining CW in 2021 he spent two years writing for Procycling. He's usually out and about on the roads of Bristol and its surrounds.

Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to riding bikes.