There is no age to renew oneself. At 70 years old, the 4 Days of Dunkerque innovate: the event will begin with a classic called “Classique Dunkerque-Hauts-de-France” (Tuesday May 13) whose winner will pocket as many UCI points as the one who then wins the pink jersey of the 5-day stage race which will cross the region (from Wednesday May 14 to Sunday May 18).
A new feature: the classic “Dunkerque-Hauts-de-France”, 193 km
This is the long-awaited novelty of this 69th edition. The 4 Days have taken place since 2017 over 6 stages. The race is somehow split in two now: a one-day classic and then, we reset the counters to zero with the start of the 4 Days which are run in 5 stages. This classic will leave Dunkirk to reach Lens. The peloton will set off from the town of Jean Bart to head south, passing through Aire-sur-la-Lys and Béthune. Originality of this route: a loop to be completed twice in the middle of the race, which will include 2 climbs, one of which is steeped in history: Notre-Dame-de-Lorette and just before Bouvigny-Boyeffles. The runners will even change countries for a short time as they will cross the Canadian Vimy memorial which pays tribute to the soldiers who died during the First World War. The winner will raise his arms in Lens, rue René Lannoy.
Stéphane Barbereau
1st stage: Sainte-Catherine – Amiens, 178 km
Sainte-Catherine, a town in Arrageois, will host the 4 Days of Dunkirk for the first time. This first stage will take the runners through Pas-de-Calais and the Somme where the finish will be judged in Amiens with a final circuit of 12.9km to be covered twice. The last time Amiens was a finishing city was in 2017 with the victory of Benjamin Thomas who was then racing for the army team. The very flat profile of the stage seems to designate a sprinter as winner in Picardy.
2nd stage: Avesnes-sur-Helpe, 185 km
This second stage will be unprecedented. Neither the starting town, Avesnes-sur-Helpe, nor the finishing town, Crépy-en-Valois, have hosted the race until then. 3 departments will be crossed: North, Aisne then Oise. A stage intended, like the day before, for sprinters.
3rd stage: Valenciennes – Famars, 154 km
This is the traditional cobbled stage of the 4 Days of Dunkirk. The race will take two paved sectors that are usually found on the Paris-Roubaix route: in Famars (1.1 km) and in Quérénaing (2.6 km). These sectors are located on a loop that the peloton will take 6 times, i.e. a total of 22.2 kilometers of cobblestones to swallow! Note that Valenciennes had not been the start or finish town of the race since 1992 and the victory of Italian sprinter Mario Cippolini.
Stéphane Barbereau
4th stage: La Chapelle-d’Armentières – Cassel, 171 km
This is another tradition of the 4 Days of Dunkirk: the Cassel stage, the day before the final arrival in Dunkirk. The organizers are innovating this year while respecting the tradition of climbing Mont Cassel: the final route will be taken first via the Porte de Dunkerque but it is through the Aire gate that the runners will then pass 6 times! This is the steepest climb, the one that was taken during the French championships in June 2023 which crowned Valentin Madouas.
Stéphane Barbereau
5th stage: Wormhout – Dunkirk, 179 km
The final stage seems, as almost always, promised to the sprinters. It will set off from Wormhout in inland Flanders. The runners will head west to make a short detour in Pas-de-Calais, south of Calais and reach the city of Jean Bart for the final circuit. Last year, it was the Irishman Sam Benett (Decathlon-AG2R) who won this final stage. The sprinter won in 4 of the 6 stages of the event, wearing the leader's pink jersey 5 days in a row to put his name on the final list. Which killed the suspense very quickly in the race. The organizers hope that this new event format will spice things up a little more.
