Vos wins in Essen on return to cyclo-cross

Marianne Vos (CCC Liv) won her first cyclo-cross race of the 2020 winter season in Essen, going away on the final lap to win alone. 

Vos watched and waited as her rivals lead the race on the muddy but largely flat course in northern Belgium. Yara Kastelijn was expected to fight for victory but was forced out of the race due to a blocked chain mid-race. 

Hungarian national champion Kata Blanka Vas lead early on and going into the final lap but then Vos accelerated to win alone to take her second consecutive victory in Essen. 

After Kata Vas crashed on the last lap, Perrine Clauzel passed her to take second place at six seconds, as did Inge van der Heijden who was third at nine seconds. Kata Vas finished fourth at 17 seconds.

"I had to go deep," Vos admitted in her post-race interview. 

"My race went well. Fortunately I was able to move up straight away at the start. I never really panicked and then rode my own race. A number of my rivals had bad luck, which changed the race situation, but I kept riding my own race.”