Van der Haar escapes to win tactical Hoogerheide World Cup

One week ahead of the Bieles 2017 UCI World championships, the win at the final Telenet UCI World Cup round of the season was for Lars van der Haar (Telenet Fidea Lions). The 25-year-old Dutch rider completed a long solo and won ahead of teammates Tom Meeusen and Corné van Kessel.

Last week, world champion Wout Van Aert (Crelan-Charles) secured the overall win in the World Cup and he opted out of the World Cup final. His arch rival, Dutch champion Mathieu van der Poel (Beobank-Corendon), had an off day in the race organised by his father Adrie.

For Van der Haar, the win in Hoogerheide came as quite a surprise, knowing he was sidelined by two injuries this season. "Very unexpected," Van der Haar said in the post-race flash interview with Sporza. "It was special. The last lap I couldn't stop smiling."

The fast, frozen course in chilly Hoogerheide provided for a very different race compared to last year's muddy edition that was won by Mathieu van der Poel. This time around, it was very hard to create gaps. In the absence of Wout Van Aert, Van der Poel took a good start and he seemed in total control of affairs during the opening lap.

In the long line behind Van der Poel, there was a problem for Spanish champion Ismail Esteban Aguando which caused a crash for Pan-American champion Stephen Hyde (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) and blocked the path of Van der Haar. The latter ended up riding outside the top 20 and a good result seemed impossible.

The race dynamic turned around when Van der Poel sat up and allowed other riders to take the initiative. Van der Haar started to believe in his chances and rode the fastest second lap of the pace, moving back into the top 10. During the fourth of ten laps, there were still 26 riders riding within ten seconds of each other.

Suddenly, Van der Poel appeared back in front. He briefly got away with French champion Clément Venturini (Cofidis). Van der Haar reacted fiercely and quickly closed the gap on the two leaders at the beginning of the fifth lap. Tom Meeusen bridged up as well and ten other riders were marking his wheel.

Van der Haar took over the command from Van der Poel, who sat up and blocked the other riders on the singletrack path through the forest. Once out of the forest, Van der Haar had a nice gap. His Telenet Fidea Lion teammates were also present in front, causing the pace to drop completely.

Half a lap later, halfway through the race, Van der Haar had a lead of 20 seconds on the first chasers. "I was struggling in the beginning but then I came back in the race. Van der Poel just did a hard lap. I thought, I'll go in the front and help him, and go on. I think, at that Van der Poel thought, this is ok, let him go. Behind him, were some teammates of mine. It gave me a big gap in a short period of time. Then I was alone," Van der Haar said.

While Van der Haar started clocking steady lap times in front, there was no organised chase behind him. Van der Poel surely didn't mind having a compatriot in front and, intentional or not, he faded further back in the group of 23 riders that rode more or less together.

"It wasn't what I expected. I hoped to go better," Van der Poel said. "It's no drama as next week is what matters most. I'm a bit disappointed but prefer it today over next week. After my first acceleration I realised that there was no punch on my move. I started becoming worse and worse. My legs were really feeling the fatigue.

"I tried to finish the race as good as possible but after a while nothing was going right. Technically it wasn't good either. On a bad day, everything goes bad. The last two years I was always very good here and the week afterwards it was slightly less good. Hopefully it'll be the other way around this time."

During the closing laps, Clément Venturini, Corné van Kessel and Tim Merlier (Crelan-Charles) distanced the rest of the group. Meeusen brought everybody back during the eighth lap. When hitting the penultimate lap, 11 riders were left in contention for the final podium spots, trailing leader Van der Haar by nearly a minute.

The same riders hit the final lap with sprinter Merlier and Meeusen leading the way. Merlier slipped away in the forest, blocking the path of Gianni Meersman (Steylaerts-Verona), and both riders lost out on their podium chances. Meeusen, Van Kessel, Venturini and Kevin Pauwels (Marlux-Napoleon Games) survived in front.

Van Kessel and Meeusen passed Venturini and left him behind before hitting the finishing straight. Meeusen then beat Van Kessel in the sprint for second place. Venturini concluded a strong race in fourth place, holding off Kevin Pauwels in the sprint for fourth place. Merlier was fifth ahead of Vermeersch and strong-finishing German champion Marcel Meisen (Steylaerts-Verona). Mathieu van der Poel finished on a distant 24th place at 2:14, just ahead of his brother David.

Van der Haar acknowledged both his trade teammates and his national team in his post-race interview. "The support of my teammates was really nice and it offered me a big gap. Still, it was difficult to hold onto my lead as it was such a fast course. It was cool to see that my teammates also got onto the podium.

"Worlds? I'm good but it'll be a completely different race. Mathieu? Don't worry. He trained hard. I believe in Mathieu. We all can," Van der Haar said.

Van Aert had already clinched the UCI World Cup series with 530 points. Pauwels held onto second at 474 ahead of Tom Meeusen (447). Laurens Sweeck (ERA Real Estate-Circus) was absent due to illness and dropped a spot to fifth place in favour of Michael Vanthourenhout (Marlux-Napoleon Games), who finished 23rd in Hoogerheide. Van Kessel is the first non-Belgian rider in sixth place with 345 points. Van der Poel missed the two first rounds of the World Cup and finishes in eighth place. European champion Toon Aerts (Telenet Fidea Lions) is out injured after last week's hard crash in Fiuggi. He drops from sixth to ninth place. 

Full Results

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#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Lars Van Der Haar (Ned) Telenet Fidea Lions1:03:32
2Tom Meeusen (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions0:00:44
3Corne Van Kessel (Ned) Telenet Fidea Lions0:00:45
4Clement Venturini (Fra) Cofidis0:00:47
5Kevin Pauwels (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon GamesRow 4 - Cell 2
6Tim Merlier (Bel) Crelan-Charlesteam0:00:51
7Gianni Vermeersch (Bel) Team Steylaerts0:00:53
8Marcel Meisen (Ger) Steylaerts-Verona0:00:54
9Jim Aernouts (Bel) Telenet Fidea LionsRow 8 - Cell 2
10Philipp Walsleben (Ger) Beobank-CorendonRow 9 - Cell 2
11Marcel Wildhaber (Swi) Scott-Odlo Mtb Racing Team0:00:55
12Michael Boros (Cze) ERA-Circus0:00:56
13Stan Godrie (Ned) Crelan-Charlesteam0:00:57
14Steve Chainel (Fra)0:00:58
15Simon Zahner (Swi)0:00:59
16Vincent Baestaens (Bel) Beobank-Corendon0:01:01
17Marek Konwa (Pol)0:01:02
18Daan Soete (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions0:01:09
19Diether Sweeck (Bel) ERA-Circus0:01:21
20Jan Nesvadba (Cze)0:01:31
21Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games0:01:43
22Tomas Paprstka (Cze)0:01:51
23Michael Vanthourenhout (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games0:02:12
24Mathieu Van Der Poel (Ned) Beobank-Corendon0:02:14
25David Van Der Poel (Ned) Beobank-Corendon0:02:19
26Twan Van Den Brand (Ned) Destil - Jo Piels Cycling TeamRow 25 - Cell 2
27Stephen Hyde (USA) Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.comRow 26 - Cell 2
28Matthieu Boulo (Fra)0:02:20
29Dieter Vanthourenhout (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games0:02:22
30Kevin Suarez Fernandez (Spa)0:02:24
31Patrick Van Leeuwen (Ned)0:02:25
32Kerry Werner (USA) Kona Endurance Team0:02:28
33Anthonin Didier (Fra)Row 32 - Cell 2
34Ian Field (GBr) Hargroves Cycles0:02:29
35Nicolas Samparisi (Ita)Row 34 - Cell 2
36Ismael Esteban Aguando (Spa)0:02:31
37Lorenzo Samparisi (Ita)0:02:35
38Alois Falenta (Fra)Row 37 - Cell 2
39Michael Van Den Ham (Can) Garneau - Easton CyclingRow 38 - Cell 2
40Javier Ruiz De Larrinaga Ibanez (Spa)0:02:37
41Emil Hekele (Cze)0:02:38
42Francis Mourey (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept0:02:47
43Jeremy Martin (Can) Focus CX Team Canada0:03:03
44Tobin Ortenblad (USA) Santa Cruz Factory Racing0:03:17
45Rob Peeters (Bel) Crelan-Charlesteam0:03:31
46Severin Sagesser (Swi)0:03:35
47Jeremy Powers (USA) Aspire Racing0:03:36
48Travis Livermon (USA) Maxxis-Shimano Pro Cyclocross0:03:45
49Jeremy Durrin (USA) Neon Velo Cycling Team0:04:05
50Michal Malik (Cze)0:04:17
51Toki Sawada (Jpn)Row 50 - Cell 2
52Marvin Schmidt (Ger)0:04:18
53Christian Helmig (Lux)0:04:19
54Jack Kisseberth (USA)0:04:35
55Aitor Hernandez Gutierrez (Spa)0:04:38
56Kohei Maeda (Jpn)0:05:11
57Hikaru Kosaka (Jpn)Row 56 - Cell 2
58Zsolt Bur (Hun)0:05:14
59Lex Reichling (Lux)0:05:18
60Scott Thiltges (Lux)0:05:46
61Mark Mcconnell (Can) Hot Sauce Cycling X Garneau0:05:58
62Ulrich Theobald (Ger)Row 61 - Cell 2
63Daniel Ania Gonzalez (Spa)Row 62 - Cell 2
64Antonin Marecaille (Fra) AVC Aix En ProvenceRow 63 - Cell 2
65Philipp Heigl (Aut)Row 64 - Cell 2
DNFMartin Haring (Svk) Dukla Banska BystricaRow 65 - Cell 2
DNFThijs Van Amerongen (Ned) Telenet Fidea LionsRow 66 - Cell 2
DNSLaurens Sweeck (Bel) ERA-CircusRow 67 - Cell 2
DNSJens Adams (Bel) Crelan-CharlesteamRow 68 - Cell 2
DNSJoachim Parbo (Den)Row 69 - Cell 2
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Final World Cup standings
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResultHeader Cell - Column 3
1Wout Van Aert (Bel) Crelan-Charlesteam530pts
2Kevin Pauwels (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games474Row 1 - Cell 3
3Tom Meeusen (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions447Row 2 - Cell 3
4Michael Vanthourenhout (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games384Row 3 - Cell 3
5Laurens Sweeck (Bel) ERA-Circus373Row 4 - Cell 3
6Corne Van Kessel (Ned) Telenet Fidea Lions345Row 5 - Cell 3
7Tim Merlier (Bel) Crelan-Charlesteam344Row 6 - Cell 3
8Mathieu Van Der Poel (Ned) Beobank-Corendon304Row 7 - Cell 3
9Toon Aerts (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions301Row 8 - Cell 3
10Marcel Meisen (Ger) Steylaerts-Verona297Row 9 - Cell 3
11Jim Aernouts (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions294Row 10 - Cell 3
12Gianni Vermeersch (Bel) Team Steylaerts285Row 11 - Cell 3
13Philipp Walsleben (Ger) Beobank-Corendon261Row 12 - Cell 3
14Daan Soete (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions230Row 13 - Cell 3
15Dieter Vanthourenhout (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games226Row 14 - Cell 3
16David Van Der Poel (Ned) Beobank-Corendon225Row 15 - Cell 3
17Michael Boros (Cze) ERA-Circus220Row 16 - Cell 3
18Clement Venturini (Fra) Cofidis205Row 17 - Cell 3
19Marcel Wildhaber (Swi) Scott-Odlo Mtb Racing Team204Row 18 - Cell 3
20Vincent Baestaens (Bel) Beobank-Corendon204Row 19 - Cell 3
21Simon Zahner (Swi)200Row 20 - Cell 3
22Jens Adams (Bel) Crelan-Charlesteam195Row 21 - Cell 3
23Lars Van Der Haar (Ned) Telenet Fidea Lions194Row 22 - Cell 3
24Steve Chainel (Fra)192Row 23 - Cell 3
25Diether Sweeck (Bel) ERA-Circus188Row 24 - Cell 3
26Rob Peeters (Bel) Crelan-Charlesteam179Row 25 - Cell 3
27Stephen Hyde (USA) Cannondale p/b Cyclocrossworld.com172Row 26 - Cell 3
28Stan Godrie (Ned) Crelan-Charlesteam170Row 27 - Cell 3
29Thijs Van Amerongen (Ned) Telenet Fidea Lions163Row 28 - Cell 3
30Matthieu Boulo (Fra)158Row 29 - Cell 3
31Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Marlux-Napoleon Games151Row 30 - Cell 3
32Daan Hoeyberghs (Bel) Beobank-Corendon136Row 31 - Cell 3
33Ismael Esteban Aguando (Spa)115Row 32 - Cell 3
34Patrick Van Leeuwen (Ned)115Row 33 - Cell 3
35Sascha Weber (Ger)112Row 34 - Cell 3
36Martin Haring (Svk) Dukla Banska Bystrica111Row 35 - Cell 3
37Severin Sagesser (Swi)109Row 36 - Cell 3
38Javier Ruiz De Larrinaga Ibanez (Spa)108Row 37 - Cell 3
39Quinten Hermans (Bel) Telenet Fidea Lions98Row 38 - Cell 3
40Ian Field (GBr) Hargroves Cycles89Row 39 - Cell 3
41Julien Taramarcaz (Swi) ERA-Circus87Row 40 - Cell 3
42Jan Nesvadba (Cze)82Row 41 - Cell 3
43Alois Falenta (Fra)79Row 42 - Cell 3
44Tomas Paprstka (Cze)78Row 43 - Cell 3
45Kevin Suarez Fernandez (Spa)75Row 44 - Cell 3
46Michael Van Den Ham (Can) Garneau - Easton Cycling64Row 45 - Cell 3
47Geoff Kabush (Can) Scott-3Rox Racing63Row 46 - Cell 3
48Jeremy Martin (Can) Focus CX Team Canada63Row 47 - Cell 3
49Tobin Ortenblad (USA) Santa Cruz Factory Racing60Row 48 - Cell 3
50Lukas Winterberg (Swi)59Row 49 - Cell 3
51Luca Braidot (Ita)58Row 50 - Cell 3
52Francis Mourey (Fra) Fortuneo - Vital Concept57Row 51 - Cell 3
53Kerry Werner (USA) Kona Endurance Team56Row 52 - Cell 3
54Twan Van Den Brand (Ned) Destil - Jo Piels Cycling Team55Row 53 - Cell 3
55Jeremy Powers (USA) Aspire Racing54Row 54 - Cell 3
56Lorenzo Samparisi (Ita)51Row 55 - Cell 3
57Travis Livermon (USA) Maxxis-Shimano Pro Cyclocross43Row 56 - Cell 3
58Nicolas Samparisi (Ita)43Row 57 - Cell 3
59Lars Boom (Ned) Team Lotto Nl - Jumbo40Row 58 - Cell 3
60James Driscoll (USA) Raleigh Clement39Row 59 - Cell 3
61Anthony Clark (USA) Squid38Row 60 - Cell 3
62Dan Timmerman (USA) Stan'S Notubes Elite CX37Row 61 - Cell 3
63Marek Konwa (Pol)34Row 62 - Cell 3
64Jeremy Durrin (USA) Neon Velo Cycling Team34Row 63 - Cell 3
65Jonathan Page (USA) Fuji34Row 64 - Cell 3
66Allen Krughoff (USA) Boulder Cycle Sport/Yogaglo32Row 65 - Cell 3
67Nicola Rohrbach (Swi)29Row 66 - Cell 3
68Aitor Hernandez Gutierrez (Spa)29Row 67 - Cell 3
69Melvin Rulliere (Fra)28Row 68 - Cell 3
70Craig Richey (Can) Garneau - Easton Cycling28Row 69 - Cell 3
71Anthonin Didier (Fra)27Row 70 - Cell 3
72Daniele Braidot (Ita)26Row 71 - Cell 3
73Justin Lindine (USA) Apex / NBX / Trek26Row 72 - Cell 3
74Daniel Summerhill (USA) Maxxis-Shimano25Row 73 - Cell 3
75Niels Wubben (Ned)22Row 74 - Cell 3
76Enrico Franzoi (Ita)20Row 75 - Cell 3
77Derek Zandstra (Can) Scott-3Rox Racing18Row 76 - Cell 3
78Cristian Cominelli (Ita)16Row 77 - Cell 3
79Andrew Dillman (USA) Cyclocross Alliance16Row 78 - Cell 3
80Hector Fernando Riveros Paez (Col)16Row 79 - Cell 3
81Troy Wells (USA) Team Clif Bar16Row 80 - Cell 3
82Mark Mcconnell (Can) Hot Sauce Cycling X Garneau16Row 81 - Cell 3
83Andreas Moser (Swi)16Row 82 - Cell 3
84Curtis White (USA)14Row 83 - Cell 3
85Radomír Šimunek (Cze)13Row 84 - Cell 3
86Benjamin Sonntag (Ger) Team Clif Bar11Row 85 - Cell 3
87Emil Hekele (Cze)10Row 86 - Cell 3
88Michal Malik (Cze)10Row 87 - Cell 3
89Stefano Capponi (Ita)9Row 88 - Cell 3
90Ivan Gicquiau (Fra)9Row 89 - Cell 3
91Kenneth Hansen (Den)9Row 90 - Cell 3
92Yannick Gruner (Ger)8Row 91 - Cell 3
93Yoann Corbihan (Fra)7Row 92 - Cell 3
94Matej Lasak (Cze)6Row 93 - Cell 3
95Antonin Marecaille (Fra) AVC Aix En Provence6Row 94 - Cell 3
96Jens Vandekinderen (Bel) Kalas-NNOF6Row 95 - Cell 3
97Aaron Schooler (Can) Focus CX Team Canada6Row 96 - Cell 3
98Felix Drumm (Ger)4Row 97 - Cell 3
99Michael Wildhaber (Swi)3Row 98 - Cell 3
100Vincent Dias Dos Santos (Lux)3Row 99 - Cell 3
101Christian Helmig (Lux)3Row 100 - Cell 3
102Andrew Juiliano (USA)2Row 101 - Cell 3
103Max Lindenau (Ger)2Row 102 - Cell 3
104Marvin Schmidt (Ger)1Row 103 - Cell 3
105Gusty Bausch (Lux)1Row 104 - Cell 3
106Yu Takenouchi (Jpn)1Row 105 - Cell 3

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