More than an elite race, Sunday’s World Cup Waterloo was a redemptive ride for Thibau Nys (Baloise Trek Lions). Just a year ago Nys competed in the men’s elite World Cup contest but could not finish due to a broken collarbone.
One year on, Nys stayed in contention for a podium spot with top contenders Laurens Sweeck (Crelan-Fristads), Nys’ teammate Lars van der Haar and Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) and scored his best finish in an elite World Cup: fifth.
“My mission has been accomplished. I didn’t dare to take the initiative myself in the last [lap], because then I could still be third. But I’m glad Lars is still third. Perhaps this was the best result possible left for us to get,” the 19-year-old said at the finish to Wielerflits.
To finish well inside the top 10 was a big achievement for the 2019 junior World Champion. Last season, his season was all highs and lows, due to the Waterloo crash and recovery. He managed to race several World Cup elite races, with his best finish 19th in Koksijde.
Nys was glad to reverse the outcome from last year in Wisconsin, which he called a ‘nightmare’. He recalled that a light rain began to fall during the elite men’s race, making sections slippery. He fell hard before the run-up located directly behind the Trek Bicycles factory building in a paved transition area.
“I tried to save it, but by trying to save it, I only made it worse. When I saw the footage of the crash, I think I was really lucky to not hit my face on the fence as well. So yeah, it could have been way worse than breaking the collarbone,” he recalled.
“Breaking your collarbone, so far from home, in the second race of the season is every rider’s nightmare, I think. [But] after all, it turned out quite OK. I hope it doesn’t happen again,” Nys told Cyclingnews, a big smile breaking out on his face. “Now I can go into the new season I worked so hard for without any big problems.”
He returned to ‘cross competition only three weeks after surgery but struggled a bit due to the long-term healing process for his entire body. By December he was back in balance and won three U23 races during the busy Christmas racing block. Then at the Belgian Nationals, he crashed again, with his shoulder taking the worst of the impact. He nonetheless salvaged a bronze medal in the U23 category at the Worlds in Fayetteville.
In May he turned the year around with a GC win on the road at Flèche du Sud and in August raced as a…
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