Gilbert, 29, is currently leading in the UCI world rankings. He won 24 trophies this year, including a remarkable triple victory in April when he claimed the three Ardennes Classics in a just one week: the Amstel Gold Classic in the Netherlands, the Flèche Wallonne and the 255.5km Liège- Bastogne-Liège.

The annual award is organised by Het Nieuwsblad newspaper. A professional jury chooses the nominees for the prestigious honour, but the cyclists themselves have the last word on who receives the prize. The trophy was awarded at a gala dinner in Vilvoorde that included a special tribute to Wouter Weylandt, the 26-year-old, Ghent-born rider who died in a crash in this year’s Giro d’Italia.