Made for the Cobbles: Aimé de Gendt and the Heart of the Belgian Classics
In Belgium, the cobbled classics are more than races, they are a shared identity. For Aimé de Gendt, they are something even deeper: a natural habitat shaped by instinct, culture and years of experience on these roads.
As the peloton approaches the most decisive phase of the spring campaign, de Gendt does so with quiet confidence. His recent performances, two strong top-10 finishes, reflect not just form, but alignment with the demands of this unique racing block.
"I think now the week that’s coming… it’s the two most important races of the spring season. It’s a really important week ahead, and I’m looking forward to Sunday also, because it passes literally by my home."
Aime De GendtFor a Flemish rider, this period carries a weight that goes beyond sport.
"If you’re Flemish, then it’s really like a national holiday… everybody comes on the street. It’s one of the special days of the season for me, certainly as a Belgian rider."
Aime De GendtPrecision Preparation
De Gendt’s build-up to the classics has been anything but improvised. Working closely with the team’s coaching staff, the focus this winter shifted towards a more demanding balance of intensity and endurance, key to handling the repeated surges and positioning battles that define racing on cobbles.
Structured training camps, an early start to the season and a targeted block ahead of Opening Weekend created a solid foundation, one that now allows him to compete consistently across a dense and demanding race schedule.
"We focused a bit more on intensity this winter, combined with endurance. I’m feeling good in the races, recovering well… the preparation was well considered"
Aime De GendtRacing What You Feel
Cobbled racing is not just about power, it is about timing, positioning and the ability to interpret constantly changing conditions. For de Gendt, this comes naturally.
The narrow roads, the sectors, the crowds, they are familiar elements, not variables to manage. When the race moves through his home region, that connection becomes even stronger, turning performance into something personal.
A Complete System for Every Scenario
In the classics, performance depends on having absolute confidence in every detail of the setup. For de Gendt, that confidence starts with his bike.
The Pinarello platform is paired with SRAM’s single chainring configuration, reducing weight and simplifying gear management in the most demanding race situations.
"It’s for sure the most beautiful bike I’ve ridden in my career… and also one of the best. It’s lightweight and aerodynamic. With SRAM, with a single chainring, it makes it even lighter."
Aime De GendtFrom there, the setup extends to every contact point with the road: wider wheels, cobble-ready tyres from Vittoria, and a configuration designed to handle both speed and unpredictability.
Equally important is the adaptability of the clothing system developed with Q36.5, a decisive factor in races where conditions can shift rapidly.
This level of preparedness ensures that, regardless of temperature, rain, or wind, the rider can focus entirely on the race.
"For every kind of weather we have something different. At Omloop we had the Rain Shell Aero, then in the past races we could just use the Dottore Pro Skinsuit, the more aero option in our selection, with the Gregarius Pro Gilet, with the Dottore Hybrid Que Jersey over. I think the team in general is just well prepared for everything, the bikes, the tyres, the wheels… we’re prepared for every kind of circumstances."
Aime De GendtEntering the Crucial Days
As the calendar reaches its defining point, de Gendt stands exactly where a classics specialist needs to be: in condition, in rhythm and fully connected to the races that matter most.
The results so far confirm the trajectory, but the real objective lies ahead, on the roads that every Belgian rider knows by heart.
