The Holmgren twins are new Canadian cyclocross champions—Ava elite and Isabella junior—but their 2022-2023 season just keeps getting better and better. On Saturday they didn’t even need to race the final junior X2O Badkamers Trofee for Isabella to win the overall category with Ava GC runner-up. And on Sunday Ava won her first junior World Cup race in Besançon, France, with Isabella finishing third place two seconds back. They are peaking before the World Championship in Hoogerheide.
The X2O Badkamers Trofee
In the second junior women’s round of the X2O Trofee on New Year’s Day, Bella triumphed with Ava runner-up. Two days later in the Herentals round, Ava was second and Bella third.
𝗚𝗣 𝗦𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗡𝘆𝘀 – 𝘃𝗿𝗼𝘂𝘄𝗲𝗻 𝗷𝘂𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗻
🥇 Isabella Holmgren
🥈 Ava Holmgren
🥉 Vida Lopez De San Roman#gpsvennys #X2OBadkamersTrofee #cyclocross pic.twitter.com/Yn680dDU43— X²O Badkamers Trofee (@X2OTrofee) January 1, 2023
Bella led her twin by a single second going into Hamme’s final round, with the third place rider so far back it was clear that one of the sisters was going to be crowned champion on Saturday. Perhaps their most impressive X2O round was when they raced elite level at November’s Koppenbergcross and placed 7th (Bella) and 9th (Ava).
World Cup
In the World Cup series, Dutch rider Lauren Molengraaf had claimed all four of the Junior women’s races before Sunday’s final contest in France. Ava was on the podium and Isabella was sixth, but after Besançon Ava became the overall runner-up and Isabella sprung onto the podium. They’ve had a fine junior World Cup January, Isabella placing third and Ava fourth in Zonhoven. Last Sunday in the Benidorm World Cup junior race, Isabella was runner-up to Molengraaf, with Ava third.
In the elite women’s race, Fem van Empel didn’t even have to show up to the last World Cup to earn the overall title, seven rounds in her pocket. Puck Pieterse took her fourth round, finishing five points behind victory van Empel.
Laurens Sweeck secured the elite men’s title last week in Spain. Canada’s Ian Ackert was 12th overall in the junior men’s category.
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Canadian Cycling Magazine…