By Rebecca Reza

The classics specialists will be anxious to test their legs in what is expected to be a rainy opening weekend of the season at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad this Saturday. The same 200 kilometer course from 2019 awaits the riders with 13 cobbled "bergs" including the iconic Kapelmuur.

Here we take a look at a few proven riders who may fly under the radar and shake things up on Saturday.  

Ian Stannard

Celebrating a decade with Team Ineos in 2020 as one of the team’s founding members, Ian Stannard is a former two-time winner of the race. Though fans have become accustomed to seeing Stannard using his powerful engine working for the team’s GC captains in stage races, the spring classics is where Stannard shines. He finished third in both Paris Roubaix and E3 Harelbeke in 2016. Stannard will lead a powerful line up from Team Ineos at the opening classic of the season.. 

The British veteran will be joined by Welshman, Owain Doull, hot off a stage win at the Tour de La Provence. “A good sign the team is ready for the classics,” Doull said in a team post following his win. Others racing Saturday include Dylan van Baarle, the team’s highest finisher in 14th place in 2019, Luke Rowe, Gianni Moscon, and Ben Swift. 

Team Ineos has enjoyed dominance in Grand Tours since its inception but has struggled to perform in the one-day races. Ineos is bringing a team to Omloop that is capable of changing that track record.

Nils Politt

Politt had an impressive 2019 classics season with several top ten finishes before his second place ride at Paris Roubaix. After a challenging and uncertain end to the season with Katusha, the German finds himself ready to launch his 2020 spring campaign as a member of the newly minted WorldTour outfit Israel Start-Up Nation. 

André Greipel was supposed to lead the team at Omloop, but the sprinting great was ruled out following a training crash which required surgery. With the absence of Greipel, Polit may have sole leadership of the team this Saturday. 

Sep Vanmarcke

Sep Vanmarcke had a frustrating 2019 classics run, crashing in E3 Binckbank classic and suffering a tragic derailleur mishap in the final kilometers of Paris Roubaix that prevented him from competing for the win. Despite his disappointment in the classics, the 2012 winner of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad finished the season strong, earning his first WorldTour victory at Bretagne Classic-Ouest in France. 

After EF Education First's unprecedented win at Tour of Flanders in 2019, the team has bolstered their classics squad and will line up Saturday with several option. Sebastian Langeveld and new recruit Jens Keukeleire will act as valuable allies for Vanmarke as he launches EF's much anticipated classics 2020 classics campaign. 

Michael Valgren

Hardly a dark horse, the Dane won Omloop Het Nieuwsblad in a banner 2018 year, which saw him also win the Amstel Gold Race. Valgren did not live up to past results in 2019 following a transfer to Team Dimension Data. 

The newly rebranded NTT Pro Cycling team has come under the management of Bjarne Riis in 2020, and the team has already celebrated five victories so far this season. Valgren will have classics specialist Edvald Boasson Hagen alongside him to help return his season to the strength he saw in 2018. 

As if to prove their intent, the entire classics squad for the team raced the hilly Tour des Alpes Maritimes et du Var in France last week in preparation for the opening weekend. 

Niki Terpstra

The previous Paris Roubaix winner is back for a second season with Total Direct Energie since racing most of his career in the blue and white colors of Deceuninck – Quick Step. The Dutchman will be leading the mostly French squad at Direct Energie for the classics season, after testing his legs at the inaugural Saudi Tour and the Vuelta Andalucia Ruta del Sol in Spain. 

Terpstra had his 2019 classics campaign cut short after suffering a terrible crash and a resulting concussion at the Tour of Flanders. He made a full recovery and ended his season with a second place at Paris-Tours. Can he get his classics career back on track in 2020?