Van Loy takes victory at GP Hasselt

Ellen Van Loy claimed her first victory of the season with a strong solo win at the GP Hasselt. Van Loy beat some stiff competition in Koksijde winner Denise Betsema and world champion Sanne Cant.

Van Loy set her stall out early, storming into the first corner in the lead and a rapid first lap helped her build a small advantage over the rest of the pack. Behind her was Cant and Betsema led the charge but a mechanical issue hampered the latter. Betsema would lose more than 20 seconds as she tinkered with her bike and had to push hard to bridge the gap.

Meanwhile, Cant was briefly left to her own devices as she tracked down Van Loy, who was less than 10 seconds behind her compatriot on the second lap. The world champion would soon get reinforcements with four laps remaining as Loes Sels and Inge van der Heijden caught up with her, while Betsema continued to close the gap.

Despite the extra help behind, Van Loy maintained a lead of 20 seconds on the chasers and looked comfortable as the laps ticked down. As the last lap approached, Van Loy was still in the lead and the lights to flag victory looked on for the 38-year-old. It would be close, though. Betsema had caught Cant and now had her sights on Van Loy. The finish line couldn’t come quickly enough for Van Loy, but she would hold on to cross the line for victory just a few seconds ahead of Betsema with Cant rounding out the podium.

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