Lucinda Brand won the opening round of the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup, holding off the attentions of a resurgent Sara Casasola in freezing Tábor.
Brand (Baloise-Glowi Lions) had been strong throughout the race, but was unable to drop Casasola (Crelan-Corendon) until late in the fifth and final lap of the race in the Czech Republic. European champion Inge van der Heijden (Crelan-Corendon) finished third, 13 seconds back.
The result extends Brand's run of consecutive podiums to a record equalling 51, level with her compatriot, Marianne Vos (Visma-Lease a Bike), who is yet to start her cyclocross season. It is also her eighth win from 10 starts this season.
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Early in the race, Brand managed to split the group, taking both Casasola and Van der Heijden with her. While she tried, she was unable to drop the other two. Only on the final lap did Van der Heijden fade, while Casasola held on into the final bends.
Second place was an excellent result for the Italian, bagging her first World Cup podium. She had been riding very well up until the European Championships at the beginning of November, when her subsequent absence was due to injury.
How it unfolded
The race was held in freezing conditions, with frost still evident in the shaded areas making the normally muddy 3.46km circuit unusually firm, though, of course the hills and obstacles remained.
Luxembourg champion, Marie Schreiber (SD Worx-Protime) was first off the line, getting a characteristically fast start, taking Leonie Bentveld (Pauwels Sauzen-Altez Industriebouw) with her. However, before the the first of two sets of stairs on the course, Lucinda Brand (Baloise-Glowi Lions) was at the front, while Schreiber had drifted back.
As the opening lap developed, European champion Inge van der Heijden (Crelan-Corendon) had made her way to the front and led over the line at the end of the first lap with Bentveld and Aniek van Alphen (Seven Racing) close at hand.
Brand was unwilling to play second fiddle, though, and took on the second lap from the front, forming a leading group with Van der Heijden and Bentveld, the trio crossing the line with a reduced lead of only three seconds from Casasola (Crelan-Corendon) and Czech champion Kristýna Zemanová.
Despite not having raced for three weeks, Casasola was soon leading the race and the group split, with only Brand and Van der Heijden able to go with the Italian, the three riders leading by five seconds at the end of the third lap.
This group consolidated their lead on lap four as each of the three women traded places on the front, but their lead was back down to five seconds as they took the bell for the start of the closing circuit, Bentveld leading the chase.
The final lap brought an early attack from Brand, the former world champion briefly dropping Van der Heijden, though Casasola remained stubbornly in contact with the Dutch woman, even passing her over the uphill plank section. Around half way round Van der Heijden was finally dropped, while Casasola was unable to stay in touch in the closing bends.
Results
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