2015 Scheldeprijs

The 2015 Scheldeprijs was the 103rd edition of the Scheldeprijs cycling classic. It took place on 8 April, starting in Antwerp and ending in Schoten. The race is rated as a 1.HC event and is part of the 2015 UCI Europe Tour.

The Scheldeprijs is known as a race that particularly suits the sprinters as it includes several cobbled roads but no significant climbs. The winner in the previous three editions, Marcel Kittel (Team Giant–Alpecin) was forced to withdraw from the race due to illness; Mark Cavendish (Etixx–Quick-Step), who had also won the race on three occasions, chose not to participate, as did André Greipel (Lotto–Soudal. The race favourite was therefore Alexander Kristoff (Team Katusha), who had won the Tour of Flanders the previous weekend. Other riders considered to have a chance of victory included Peter Sagan (Tinkoff–Saxo), Elia Viviani (Team Sky) and Romain Feillu (Bretagne–Séché Environnement).

An early breakaway was brought back with 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) remaining, with the work done by Katusha, Etixx-Quick Step and Team Sky. There was a large crash at the front of the peloton in the last two kilometres of the race. This took out many of the race favourites. Kristoff was without teammates in the final part of the race, but he was able to follow the FDJ train to win the sprint finish from the small group that had avoided the crash.