Omloop Het Nieuwsblad considers £153,000 cost of its new WorldTour status

Belgian organiser of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad says that it will cost €180,000 to become a WorldTour event this year, despite limited benefits

Peter Sagan in the 2016 Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

(Image credit: Graham Watson)

Belgium's opening classic Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, presented yesterday in Ghent, is weighing up the €180,000 (£153,000) cost of being in the UCI WorldTour.

The race, scheduled for February 25, is one of 10 new WorldTour events in the 2017 calendar. Previously, it ranked 1.HC, but still could attract big stars. Team Sky's Ian Stannard won in 2014 and 2015. Greg Van Avermaet (BMC Racing) topped Peter Sagan (Bora-Hansgrohe) and Tiesj Benoot (Lotto-Soudal) in 2016.

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Gregor Brown

Gregor Brown is an experienced cycling journalist, based in Florence, Italy. He has covered races all over the world for over a decade - following the Giro, Tour de France, and every major race since 2006. His love of cycling began with freestyle and BMX, before the 1998 Tour de France led him to a deep appreciation of the road racing season.