2016 Liège–Bastogne–Liège
| 2016 UCI World Tour, race 13 of 28 | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race details | |||||||||||||
| Dates | 24 April 2016 | ||||||||||||
| Stages | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Distance | 248 km (154.1 mi) | ||||||||||||
| Winning time | 6h 24' 29" | ||||||||||||
| Results | |||||||||||||
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| Winner |
 Wout Poels (NED)
|
(Team Sky) | |
| Second |
 Michael Albasini (SUI)
|
(Orica–GreenEDGE) | |
| Third |
 Rui Costa (POR)
|
(Lampre–Merida) |
The 2016 Liège–Bastogne–Liège was a one-day classic cycling race that took place on 24 April 2016. It was the fourth cycling monument of the 2016 season and was the thirteenth event of the 2016 UCI World Tour. The race came at the end of the spring classics season.
The race took place on a 248-kilometre (154 mi) route that started in Liège, headed to Bastogne and returned to Liège before ending in Ans. The route included many hills, especially in the final 70 kilometres (43 mi), which were the principal difficulty in the race. Originally the race was scheduled to take place on a 253-kilometre (157 mi) route, but due to the bad weather conditions the race was shortened. Alejandro Valverde (Movistar Team) was the defending champion and was among the favourites for victory, following his victory in La Flèche Wallonne the previous week.
The decisive move in the race came in the final classified climb of the day, the Côte de la Rue Naniot, where Michael Albasini (Orica–GreenEDGE) initiated a four-man breakaway. The group contested the sprint for victory, with Wout Poels (Team Sky) winning ahead of Albasini and Lampre–Merida's Rui Costa.
Although the majority of the route was the same as in previous years, there were some significant changes to the route compared to the 2015 edition. The Côte de Stockeu, which had previously been part of a trio of climbs that came with 100 kilometres (62 mi) to go to the finish, was omitted due to roadworks. Instead, a new climb was inserted between the Côte de San Nicolas and the finish line in Ans. This climb, the Côte de la Rue Naniot, was in the suburbs of Liège and was a steep, straight, cobbled road. The 600 metres (660 yd) of the climb were at an average gradient of 10.5%; the summit came with 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) to the finish.
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