World champion Lucinda Brand (Baloise Verzekeringen-Het Poetsbureau Lions) opened her cyclo-cross season in style on Sunday, winning the first round of HG Cross in Dendermonde with a dominant ride.
Opening the series formerly known as Exact Cross, Brand didn't win solo, but put down such power and force on the final lap that the riders on the wheel couldn't even sprint against her as she charged for the line.
Her best match was Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Premier Tech), who took second, whilst Denise Betsema (De Ceuster Bouwkranen) completed the podium in third.
"It was not an easy race, the level was really close to each other on a difficult course with so many corners. You always think you're prepared in the first [race] but once you come on the course of the race then it's different!"
Round 1 of the HG Cross series in Dendermonde marked the first major European cyclo-cross event of the 2026/27 season, with the majority of the big names all in action on Sunday.
World champion Brand took control of the race from early on, not attacking but taking her place at the head of the bunch from the opening lap, setting the pace and sharing first position with the likes of Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado and Denise Betsema.
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Things stayed together in a large group for quite a long time, with the top 10 best riders all sticking together for much of the first five laps before Brand started to crank things up. It was a gradual upping in pace at first, but then Brand really put the hammer down on the sandy climb on lap six, which immediately strung things out.
Alvarado was the rider who was able to stick closest to Brand, although not directly on her wheel, with Betsema and Aniek van Alphen (777TV CX) just behind
On the final lap, Brand had just a couple of seconds on Alvarado, with the two chasers seven seconds further back, and the field split apart behind that. But rather than pull out a gap, Brand found herself caught by Alvarado and Betsema, and forced to lead the trio out for much of the final lap.
However, instead of play a tactical game, Brand just put the power down for the full final lap, meaning that by the time they got to the finishing straight Alvarado and Betsema had little left to give, and Brand was able to power to the line and take the win.
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Matilda is an NCTJ-qualified journalist based in the UK who joined Cyclingnews in March 2025. Prior to that, she worked as the Racing News Editor at GCN, and extensively as a freelancer contributing to Cyclingnews, Cycling Weekly, Velo, Rouleur, Escape Collective, Red Bull and more. She has reported on the ground at all of the biggest events on the calendar, including the men's and women's Tours de France, the Giro d'Italia, the Vuelta a Espana, the Spring Classics and the World Championships. She has particular experience and expertise in women's cycling, and women's sport in general. She is a graduate of modern languages and sports journalism.
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