Compton crushes opposition at Namur 'Cross World Cup

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Katie Compton (Trek Cyclocross Collective) dominated the racing in Namur, with its muddy, sloping course. On a drizzling Sunday afternoon in Belgium, she collected her fourth World Cup win of the season. Compton now has an extremely comfortable lead of 80 points over Sanne van Paassen (Rabobank Women) in the World Cup standings.

"The technical parts were fun, although the off-camber section was tricky. I love this race," said Compton. "Things are looking really good for the World Cup. I might not have to go to Hoogerheide to get the overall win." To skip the final World Cup round in Hoogerheide, the US-champion must have a lead of at least 60 points after the next two World Cup rounds in Zolder and Rome.

During Sunday's race in Namur, the Colorado-based rider quickly gapped her rivals during a spectacular first lap. Halfway through the lap, Compton moved forward while mistakes were made behind her.

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World champion Marianne Vos (Rabobank Women), who was making her debut in the World Cup, twice dived into the mud, losing a lot of ground. "It was a tough 'cross, and it gets tougher if you see the mud from up close a couple of times," Vos said.

Vos' fumblings meant that after one lap, Compton led the race by a handful of seconds over Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team) and Van Paassen. The latter woman lost contact with Nash as she seemed hesitant to tackle the steep, slippery drops.

Halfway through the race, Compton led Nash by 15 seconds while a group with Vos, Van Paassen, Helen Wyman (Kona) and Nikki Harris (Young Telenet-Fidea) trailed the leader by more than half a minute.

Things turned around during the third of four laps as Nash showed off her great technical skills on an off-camber descent. She was kick-stepping and sliding towards Compton. "I heard her coming on the run-up. I had to commit and had something extra for the final one and a half laps. I tried to keep it smooth from there," Compton said, describing how she quickly distanced Nash.

"She could sense me and had more left in her tank," Nash said. "I also flatted during the last lap, but I was already 10 seconds down on her. I told myself not to make more mistakes."

Behind them, Vos unleashed her power and gapped all of her rivals, seemingly securing third place. Vos was half a minute down on Nash, but she had the momentum to make up a lot of ground during the bell lap. "You can never count her out, but I tried to ride my own race," Nash said.

Eventually Vos had to focus on who was behind her rather than ahead of her as Wyman was on her heels. "I still need to get hold of the 'cross rhythm," Vos said.

Positions remained the same in the final lap, with Compton winning ahead of Nash and Vos. British champion Wyman was satisfied with her fourth place, well ahead of her compatriot Harris and Van Paassen.

The next round of the World Cup will be held in Zolder on Wednesday.

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