The UCI Gravel World Championships' may have fallen awkwardly this year, with them coinciding with the fifth and final Monument of the men's road cycling season in Il Lombardia, and taking place just before the final two rounds of the Life Time Grand Prix series - enough to force several US pros to skip the event in the Netherlands - but they didn't disappoint in entertainment, star names, or gravel tech.
Originally planned to take place in Nice, France, the fourth edition of the Gravel Worlds was moved to the Zuid-Limburg region of the Netherlands - Amstel Gold Race territory - earlier in the year due to time and technical constraints on the Côte d'Azur organisers.
2024 elite women's champion Marianne Vos (Netherlands) made sure to keep things balanced in her cockpit notes. Her fueling strategy was complemented with a simple 'ENJOY' message and what seems to be a sticker of her coach riding a scooter.
Italian cycling is well-known for its stylish nature, but it was all about convenience with the placement and attachment of these sealant canisters on the bikes of the women's squad.
Shirin van Anrooij's (Netherlands) Trek ProjectOne had two CO2 canisters strapped to her seat post, and what appears to be a tyre plug fitted neatly next to the seat post clamp.
Van Anrooij's bike in all its glory ahead of Saturday's race. She raced with standard Bontranger Aeolus Pro 49V wheels, but her Pirelli Cinturato Gravel RH tyres are a model not yet listed on the brand's website.
The bike of eventual race winner Lorena Wiebes (Netherlands) just hanging around pre-race.
Wiebes' bike, with two wheels, in a much muckier state inside the winner's enclosure.
Wiebes opted for a SRAM 1x setup, with a Wolf Tooth chain catcher.
Belgium's Fauve Bastiaenssen didn't opt for flared drops on her S-Works Crux, despite it being the norm within gravel racing nowadays.
The tiny control buttons for the Gravaa Adaptable Tyre Pressure System on one of the Visma-Lease a Bike riders machines.
Vos used the Gravaa system too, but opted for a mismatched tyre combination. She used Vittoria's 42c Corsa Control road tyre on the rear and paired it with a 45c Terreno T70 at the front. Not something you see every day.
Rosa Klöser won the award for the widest tyre used across the weekend though, with a front wheel fitted with a Continental Dubnital. We can't tell which model they are, but they only come in 2.2" or 2.4" options, so that's at least 57mm of tread to help her tackle the Belgian gravel. Optimised or overkill?
Tiffany Cromwell (Australia) with what appears to be a carbon fibre chain catcher on her custom-painted Canyon.
Plenty of Aussie phrases were printed onto Cromwell's frame and fork. I'm going to make it my mission to include 'Vegemite velocity' in an article the next time I cover an Australian cyclist storming to the win.
And then a lovely blend of green and purple across the rear of the frame. Nicely done, Canyon.
Alongside the big name brands, we also spotted a set of TUFO Gravel Thundero 44c tyres within the women's peloton.
This was spotted on a coach's bike, not a rider's, but we thought it was an interesting tidbit to share. The sponge underneath the saddle is apparently an old school German technique to prevent saddle deformation.
The gravel in Limburg across the weekend was mostly dry, but naturally, that did mean it was loose in places.
Much was made of Tom Pidcock (Great Britain) participating in the Gravel Worlds less than 24 hours after finishing sixth at Il Lombardia. The multi-discipline talent didn't see a reason not to race in Limburg, and wanted an opportunity to ride the new Pinarello Dogma GR.
The British rider opted for a slammed stem on his Most integrated cockpit.
Despite Pidcock riding on Scott bikes for his road trade team Q36.5, he has stayed loyal to Pinarello for off-road exploits such as MTB, cyclo-cross and now gravel.
Pidcock rode 35c Vittoria Terreno Pro T30 tyres for the Limburg course.
Given his rapid dash from northern Italy to Limburg, Pidcock and his mechanics spent some time tinkering with his setup ahead of the 180km race.
Pidcock also used a Wolf Tooth Lone Wolf chain catcher for extra aero efficiency.
Gianni Vermeersch (Belgium) sported a Canyon Grail with a blackout aesthetic.
The Belgian was also using a Pirelli tyre model that isn't yet publicly available, as noted by the black marker covering the branding.
Perhaps my favourite mod of the weekend was this hidden tyre plug, fitted into the axle of a Wolf Tooth 50T aero chainring belonging to Belgium's Daan Soete.
Soete was riding a Ridley ASTR RS for Sunday's race, with Wolf Tooth clipless pedals from their new CTRL ALT DEL range.
Out on the course and Niels Vandeputte (Belgium) did not seem to have much interest in stopping to repair his rear flat tyre.
Laurens Sweeck with a tidy repair kit strapped to his top tube. Some pros just like to keep things plain and simple.
Matej Mohorič (Slovenia) and his trade teammates at Bahrain-Victorious were spotted aboard an as-yet unreleased Merida Mission gravel bike.
The 2023 champion used a Prologo Nago R4 PAS AGX saddle on Sunday.
The eye-catching, multi-colour paint swirl effect on the Mission's fork was certainly something to behold, and maybe even a distraction technique.
Distracting onlookers from what you might ask? Perhaps these yet-to-be-released Continental Terra Competition gravel tyres, which were hastily covered over with marker pen when our photographer came calling.
The new set of tyres had minimal tread for the dry gravel course in and around Limburg.
Post-race and sixth-place finisher Tom Pidcock was busy assessing his rear tyre for issues, seemingly not 100% happy with it in the closing stages. Oh, and we'll take any excuse to include a dog at a bike race!
Last up, it's elite men's winner Florian Vermeersch (Belgium) with his Colnago G4-X in emerald green.
Its geometry and design don't differ vastly from its road relative, which perhaps serves as an indicator of how challenging, or not, the Belgian gravel was this weekend. Nonetheless, they allowed Vermeersch to turn two silvers into a gold on home trails.
Vermeersch used a 54/40T chainring setup, with an 11-34 cassette, alongside ENVE SES4.5 wheels and 40c Continental Terra Speed tyres.
Thank you for your Cyclingnews subscription. We use our subscription fees to be able to keep producing all our usual great content as well as more premium pieces like this one. Find out more here.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.