Fem van Empel (Visma-Lease a Bike) held off Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) for the win at the X20 Trofee in Baal, Belgium on New Year’s Day. Rounding out the podium in third was nineteen-year-old Canadian National champion, Ava Holmgren (Lidl-Trek).
Deep mud from weeks of rain made for an extremely demanding course that required equal amounts of skill and power. For most of the race, the lead switched back and forth between Van Empel and Brandt with neither one able to gain a clear advantage over the other. While Brand showed she had the superior skills on the muddy sections, especially the downhills, Van Empel showed she had the power to force the pace and gap Brand. As the final minutes of the race wound down, it looked like it might come down to a sprint, but Van Empel was able to force the pace one last time and take the lead and cross the line 25″ ahead of Brand.
Afterwards, Van Empel appeared satisfied but critical of her win. “I notice that my technique has been letting me down lately. It’s not that I suddenly can’t steer anymore, but it looks like … There is work to be done.”
Brand conceded that Van Empel had the upperhand in the end. “I think Fem was a bit better uphill. I made too many small mistakes. Maybe I wanted a little too much. I think I was certainly able to apply good technical pressure, but of course you have to remain error-free.”
Behind Van Empel and Brand, there was a hard fought race for third between Clara Honsinger (Team S&M CX), Sanne Cant (Crelan-Corendon), and Ava Holmgren (Lidl-Trek). While Honsinger and Cant traded the lead back and forth, looking like the only two contenders for the final podium spot, behind them Holmgren had found her rhythm and was quietly making up lost ground. It wasn’t long before Holmgren passed Honsinger and Cant in the middle of the 3rd lap and gained 15 seconds on them with one lap to go. By the the time she crossed the line in third place, she had increased here lead to 44 seconds over Cant and Honsinger, who finished 4th and 5th.
Holmgren was elated with her podium finish, saying afterwards, “I couldn’t really believe it, honestly. A top three in Europe, no matter the race, no matter who shows up, is pretty crazy for a North American. So I am stoked about that.”
Results
https://cyclocross24.com/race/16019/
