Belgian champion Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Dstny) won the 37th edition of Binche-Chimay-Binche (1.1) on Tuesday, which was contested over 198.6 kilometers. The closing race of the 2024 professional season in Wallonia announced a great sprint moment which was confirmed on the Grand-Place in Binche.
Six riders quickly set the tone for the race in the traditional morning breakaway. Michiel Coppens (BEAT Cycling Club), the German Michael Schwarzmann (Israel – Premier Tech), the Spaniard Iker Mintegi (Euskaltel-Euskadi), the French Adrien Maire (TDT – Unibet Cycling) and the Dutch Stijn Appel (BEAT Cycling Club ) and Rindert Buiter (VolkerWessels Cycling) took an advantage of 4:20 after thirty kilometers of racing.
The advantage of the leading men faded as the local circuits approached. The action of the sprinter teams, notably Lotto-Dstny and Soudal Quick-Step, led to the general regrouping 48 kilometers from the finish. Several skirmishes occurred in the circuits around Binche, in particular, that of the Italian Alessandro Covi (UAE Emirates) and the Dane Andreas Stokbro Nielsen (TDT-Unibet) who had long been in the spotlight of the peloton. All attempts were without effect.
The grouped peloton presented itself at the bottom of the last Binchois “pavement” in which Jasper Philipsen sounded the charge. Arnaud De Lie plugged the hole created by the rider from Alpecin-Deceuninck, to win in force. The Eritrean Binian Girmay (Intermarché-Wanty) and Milan Fretin (Cofidis) completed the podium.
Arnaud De Lie took over the race winners from the Italian Luca Mozzato who had beaten Edward Theuns and the Dane Sören Kragh Andersen in 2023.
