Muur van Geraardsbergen: cycling's iconic places

The Muur van Geraardsbergen is one of the most famous climbs, having been used in the Three Days of De Panne, Tour of Flanders, Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Eneco Tour

Tackling the Muur van Geraardsbergen during the 2009 Tour of Flanders

(Image credit: Graham Watson)

“The Muur is a rendezvous with your character,” Eddy Planckaert, 1988 Tour of Flanders winner

Every year, on the first Sunday in April, the 92 metres of the Muur van Geraardsbergen separate one man from history. Ninety-two metres, that’s all the height that the second last climb in the Tour of Flanders gains. Ninety-two metres that selects a winner of the most charismatic of bike races in front of the sport’s most fanatical fans.

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Edward Pickering is a writer and journalist, editor of Pro Cycling and previous deputy editor of Cycle Sport. As well as contributing to Cycling Weekly, he has also written for the likes of the New York Times. His book, The Race Against Time, saw him shortlisted for Best New Writer at the British Sports Book Awards. A self-confessed 'fair weather cyclist', Pickering also enjoys running.