Gent-Wevelgem Women is a race where the sprinters have fought it out for the top step right since the fourth edition of the event in 2017, and as much as many of the breakaway specialists hoped some course alterations would change that in 2022, it didn't.
Though 2023 could have a different story to tell. In contrast to the fine conditions last year defending champion Elisa Balsamo (Trek-Segafredo) may well be lining up to defend in wet and windy weather. What's more, it will be a field where the attackers would have been emboldened by the outcome of the last two races of the Women's World, Trofeo Alfredo Binda and Brugge-De Panne, both of which were taken by a solo victor.
The tough 162.5km race that marks the ninth round of the top-tier series could of course still hold in favour of the fast finishers – with a potential showdown between Lorena Wiebes (SD Worx), Balsamo and Charlotte Kool (Team DSM) – but there is a bound to be a fight to break that tradition along the road from Ypres.
