hosted the start of the race on its central
Market Square for the first time. The city of
Antwerp staged the start of the event for the first time, after 19 starts in
Bruges, marking the first time the Tour of Flanders addressed the
province of Antwerp. The race finished in
Oudenaarde for a total distance of and saw the renewed inclusion of the
Muur van Geraardsbergen, one of the emblematic climbs of the race. The first of the race are on all-flat roads from Antwerp via
Sint-Niklaas,
Dendermonde,
Aalst and
Zottegem towards Oudenaarde, where the race passes for the first time after ; before addressing the first of 18 climbs, the
Oude Kwaremont after . The Muur van Geraardsbergen is the ninth categorised climb at from the finish. The final were identical to previous editions. Of the final nine climbs, first was the
Kanarieberg, then the first combination of Oude Kwaremont–Paterberg, followed just later by the roughly-cobbled
Koppenberg, the steepest climb of the race. The Koppenberg was immediately followed by the flat cobbled sector of the Mariaborrestraat, leading to the
Steenbeekdries and
Taaienberg climbs. The
Kruisberg in
Ronse came at from the finish, before heading to the final two climbs. The second pairing of Oude Kwaremont and Paterberg represented the end game of the race, preceding the run-in to the finish.
Categorised climbs and cobbles , with gradients touching 20%, is re-included in the course after a five-year absence. in
Kluisbergen is the last climb of the race with just a run-in remaining to
Oudenaarde. Eighteen categorised climbs are programmed, of which 12 are cobbled. In addition to the climbs, five sectors of flat cobbled roads are included. ==Participating teams==