The ‘cross season is in full swing! Although the Exact Cross and Superprestige races have been going for a while, Sunday marked the first UCI World Cup, in Antwerp.
Exact ‘Cross
Eli Iserbyt claimed victory in the men’s elite race at the Exact Cross in Kortrijk with a time of 57:44, finishing 19 seconds ahead of Niels Vandeputte. Vandeputte outsprinted Michael Vanthourenhout for the runner-up spot. The course was fast for the most part, with plenty of pavement and grass–but with the recent rain, some of the corners and steep uphills made for tricky conditions. Visma – Lease a Bike’s Fem van Empel dominated the women’s elite race at the Exact Cross, finishing in 41:57, 47 seconds ahead of Marion Norbert Riberolle and 59 seconds ahead of Inge van der Heijden.
World Cup
Fem van Empel made a winning return to racing this weekend, claiming victory in Sunday’s sandy and windy opening round of the 2024-2025 UCI Cyclocross World Cup in Antwerp. The win marked her third consecutive Antwerp World Cup triumph and her 15th World Cup victory in the last four seasons. Edmonton’s Sidney McGill began her European campaign with a 35th-place finish.
Earlier in the day, Nico Knoll of Calgary, who finished second at the national championships last week, won the junior women’s race.
In the men’s race, Eli Iserbyt had another big day, earning his first C1-plus victory of the season in Sunday’s opening round of the 2024-2025 UCI Cyclocross World Cup on a sandy, windy course in Antwerp, Belgium. This season, Iserbyt has drawn attention more for serving a UCI suspension after a wheel-stamping incident in his first race of the year and enduring a beer-throwing incident, but now he finds himself leading the biggest of Europe’s three major cyclocross series. Iserbyt has previously won two of the last three World Cup titles.
Wout van Aert’s ‘cross season
Wout van Aert’s cyclocross return may be delayed due to lingering issues from a knee injury sustained in a crash during the Vuelta a España in September. Although he has resumed solid bike training, Het Laatste Nieuws reports his running form remains problematic.
There’s a kid in Belgium named Wout Van Aert, and he’s obvi not a fan of van der Poel
Initially expected to race shortly after his Visma – Lease a Bike training camp ends on Dec. 19, van Aert’s timeline is now uncertain. Directeur sportif Jan Boven had previously stated that the earliest return would be late December, but extra…
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