By Laura Weislo The third round of Belgium's Superprestige cyclo-cross series heads deep into the...
Sven Nys has won four years in a row in Gavere (Image credit: AFP)
By Laura Weislo
The third round of Belgium's Superprestige cyclo-cross series heads deep into the heart of West Flanders for a messy 'cross in a cow pasture at Asper-Gavere. With rain in the forecast for the weekend, the course should revert to the ankle-deep muck that eats drive trains for breakfast of two years ago. The course typically involves the kinds of tight, off-camber turns and muddy ascents which favour the most powerful and skilled riders in the peloton.
For the past four years in a row, that rider has been Sven Nys (Landbouwkrediet-Tönissteiner), but the Belgian champion isn't as dominating this season as he has been in recent years. Niels Albert (Palmans-Cras) and Nys are tied one-one in the series, with Nys out-sprinting Albert and Sunweb-Projob's Klaas Vantornout in Ruddervoorde, and Albert putting in a spectacular performance in Veghel-Eerde.
Nys, who raced the last round in the Netherlands with a dislocated finger sustained during his winning ride in Oudenaarde should be all healed up from two weekends of injuries, and will be looking for revenge after a sound beating by world champion Lars Boom in the Pijnacker World Cup.
