Officials neutralised the women's peloton and shortened the route at Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday due to a car incident ahead of the race that involved two vehicles from the men's race caravan.
Due to the location of the incident, organisers confirmed that they removed Knokteberg-Trieu and Hotond from the women's route, shortening the race by about 20km.
"Women's race currently neutralised due to an in race accident with 2 cars in the men's race. We have no more details at the moment," organisers posted across its social media channels during the women's 129.9km race.
Het Laatste Nieuws published video from the aftermath of the car crash showing the medical car from the men's race on its side in a ditch on the side of the road and the Soudal-Quickstep team car pried open like a tin can.
A fire brigade from Ronse was called in to rescue the race doctor from the car. The doctor was taken to the hospital in Ronse with non-life-threatening injuries. The driver of the Soudal-Quickstep car was reportedly uninjured.
The women's race started at the Hippodrome in Waregem, and the original route included nine ascents: Hellestraat, Volkegemberg, Berg Ten Houte, Kanarieberg, Knokteberg-Trieu, Hotond, Ladeuze, Nokereberg, and Nokere before a 10km run-in to Waregem.
At the time of the neutralisation, about 62km into the 129.9km race, a breakaway had formed with a slim 17-second lead that included World Champion Lotte Kopecky, Niamh Fisher-Black and Mischa Bredewold (all SD Worx-Protime), Elisa Longo Borghini and Lizzie Deignan (Lidl-Trek), Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a bike), Audrey Cordon-Ragot (Human Powered Health), Arlenis Sierra (Movistar) and Thalita de Jong (Lotto Dstny Ladies).
As officials neutralised the race, the field regrouped at the side of the road and patiently waited for about 15 to 20 minutes, taking the time to eat, drink fluids, and put on jackets and gloves before officials safely resumed the race.
Organisers immediately confirmed that the two cars involved in the incident were from the men's race caravan. The women's race was neutralised to allow the emergency services to tend to the incident.
The racing resumed with the peloton together with 46km to go. Organisers stated that the lead group wasn't given a head start once the race resumed: "Because the lead of the leading group was limited, the peloton started again in a closed form."
They also confirmed that the route needed to be altered and that two mid-race ascents, Knokteberg-Trieu and Hotond, had to be removed, shortening the race by about 20km. The climbing resumed at the Ladeuze ascent, which was located with 38km to go.
Once the race restarted, a six-rider breakaway emerged that included Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike), Elisa Longo Borghini and Shirin van Anrooij (Lidl-Trek), Lotte Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime), Letizia Paternoster (Liv Jayco AlUla) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck).
Vos and Van Anrooij broke away from that group with 12km to go, and Vos won a two-up sprint to take her 250 career victory at Dwars door Vlaanderen.
