Fem van Empel (Visma-Lease A Bike) took victory in the ninth round of the UCI Cyclocross World Cup in Benidorm, prevailing in the sprint at the end of a thrilling race which, for the most part, saw a group of around a dozen riders fighting for the win.
The 22-year-old beat Lucinda Brand (Baloise Glowi Lions) to the line as the pair accelerated away at the end of the sixth and final lap in Spain. Two seconds further back, Marie Schreiber (SD Worx-Protime) rounded out the podium just ahead of Van Empel's Visma teammate Marianne Vos.
"It was exciting. I'm always happy to race here. The crowd was amazing and it's an amazing race," Van Empel said later of her third Benidorm victory in as many years. "During the start, I was focussed and I think I was in first or second position for the whole race so yes, I was always in control."
"Last year, the final was really about the last corner, which shows that it's exciting here every year. I'm always happy to race here. The crowd is great and there are a lot of children along the side," she added, according to WielerFlits.
"I think I was in control for the whole race. My start was focussed and I was always in first or second position. Lucinda closed the door well the whole time, but the barriers were one of the last opportunities to find a gap.
"I went full throttle over them and had already done my sprint before the asphalt. The way I win is special, that shows my fighting spirit. I am happy with my season and with this victory."
There were plenty of big names present at the start in Benidorm, though Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) was a notable absentee through illness. As a result, the early stages of the fast race through the sand saw a large group form up front packed with favourites.
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Efforts came and went, including from Van Empel and Schreiber, as Brand battled back from a tough start. But by the start of the third lap, a group of around a dozen riders led the way.
Van Empel, Brand, Schreiber, and Vos were up there. So too were Ceylin Del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck), Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime), Crelan-Corendon trio Sara Casasola, Manon Bakker, and Inge van der Heijden, and French duo Amandine Fouquenet (Arkéa-B&B Hotels) and Célia Gery (AS Bike Racing), and Zoe Backstedt (Canyon-SRAM Zondacrypto).
Van Empel and Brand both took turns upping the pace, but at the start of the next lap, 11 still remained in the lead group, prompting Brand to once again push on. This time, a selection was made, with Van Empel, Vas and Alvarado following to make it four up front.
Alvarado couldn't hang with the high pace though, and by lap five she was chasing at five seconds down while Casasola (11 seconds) and the larger chase group (14 seconds) looked to be out of contention.
But things didn't stay that way as the pace slowed up on the asphalt, letting the chasers back in and bringing the numbers at the front back to 11. Brand, Van Empel and Vas were joined once again by Alvarado, Vos, Schreiber, Casasola, Van der Heijden, Fouquenet, Backstedt and Visma-Lease A Bike teen Viktória Chladanová.
Brand continued to make the pace on the front on lap six as the finish line loomed, with the 35-year-old's acceleration proving once again too much for most of the riders who had rejoined. She led Van Empel, Vos, and Schreiber into the final stages of the race, though the world champion came through to take over as the quartet dismounted to get over the beams.
It would stay that way to the end as Van Empel led the group into the final stages of the closing lap. She opened the sprint, distancing Schreiber and Vos, while Brand could only stay in her shadow to take second place. Further back, Vas was the best of the chase group, coming away with fifth place at 13 seconds down.
Despite taking away 40 points to Brand's 30, it's Brand who remains in the overall lead of the UCI World Cup standings. With a 51-point advantage holds a near-unassailable lead with two rounds in Maasmechelen and Hoogerheide left to run.
Brand, on 285 points, leads Van Empel on 234, while Backsted is third on 194, ahead of Schreiber (188) and Vas (183).
Dani Ostanek is Senior News Writer at Cyclingnews, having joined in 2017 as a freelance contributor before being hired full-time. Her favourite races include the Paris-Roubaix, Tour de France Femmes, Tro-Bro Léon, and cycling's fourth Grand Tour, the Volta a Portugal.
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