Stybar beats Albert in the mud

Zdenek Stybar (Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team) won the fifth UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup round of the season in a mud bath in Igorre, Spain. The Czech champion blasted away from Belgian stars Niels Albert (BKCP-Powerplus) and Sven Nys (Landbouwkrediet - Colnago) in the last lap, with the latter failing to avoid a lapped rider in a decisive moment.

"I didn't start with a plan to attack so early. I listened to my legs and early on, they're always doing pretty well," Stybar explained how he got to the front.

At the halfway point, Nys and Albert seemed stronger, but in the final lap Stybar launched an attack just before a steep ramp. "In the final laps, I found my best legs again. I certainly surprised Nys with my attack at that point. I didn't see what happened behind, but I heard something," said Stybar. "Next time it could be me, that's cross."

In the overall classification, Stybar closed in on Albert, and now he's only five points behind the World Champion. "Winning the World Cup? That's what motivates me. That's why I'm riding cyclo-cross," Stybar said.

Runner-up Albert saved his leading position in the World Cup with a second place today. The Belgian explained that his form was getting better after a few tough weeks. "It was better than the last few weeks when I didn't feel good racing. The first half of this week, I wasn't feeling good because of a hard training week here in Spain. During the second half, I got better. That lapped rider shouldn't have been there. The finale would have been completely different. Stybar had a gap before it happened, but suddenly we were a handful of seconds behind," Albert said.

Eventual third placed Nys saw his chances ruined after colliding with the lapped rider. The Belgian champion said that if the accident hadn't happened, he would have had a good chance for victory. "I surely would have reached the top and connected with Stybar, but I didn't expect that the lapped rider would not check what was happening behind him and step aside. Due to that crash, something broke inside of me, and I was unable to chase again," Nys said.

Further back, American Jonathan Page claimed his best World Cup result of the season with an eighth place, a result that will surely boost his confidence one week ahead of the US national championships.

How it unfolded

As predicted, rain had soaked the Basque country all week long, turning the Igorre course into a mud bath like last year. On race day, it stopped raining, and temperatures reached 15 degrees Celsius. Nine laps of the 2,640-metre course were to be covered on a lap that featured only 35 metres of elevation change per lap.

After a quiet opening lap, the debate was started by eventual winner Stybar and Sven Vanthourenhout. A few moments later, Vanthourenhout was unable to keep up with Stybar. Behind Stybar, Klaas Vantornout (Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team) was suddenly absent due to a wheel problem, but he had a go at being the most aggressive rider of the day by launching a strong comeback a little later.

Albert brought the chasers back within reach of Stybar, and after four laps, he bridged up to the Czech together with Nys. The three protagonists had a seven-second gap on a five-man, all-Belgian chase group - including Erwin Vervecken, Bart Aernouts (Rabobank), Kevin Pauwels (Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team), Sven Vanthourenhout (Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team) and a surprisingly strong Bart Wellens (Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team). The latter even launched a solo attempt to bridge up the leaders halfway through the race, but that was when Nys launched a first acceleration.

Albert experienced some difficulties keeping up with Nys and Stybar, but half a lap later, the three were back together, with Wellens thrown back into the chase group.

In the background, Vantornout was steadily moving up and with three laps to go, he bridged up to his teammate Sven Vanthourenhout and Wellens, together with Bart Aernouts and Dutchman Gerben De Knegt. For the win, it seemed to be too late as the leaders had half a minute on the first chasers.

One lap later, Vantornout dropped that gap down to 20 seconds with only Wellens able to keep up. In front, Albert tried to control the group, and the three leaders entered the last lap together, with Vantornout and Wellens still at 20 seconds.

Nys and Stybar fought for the best position as they hit the steep ramp. Eventually it was Stybar who blasted up the climb on the right, hopping off his bike near the top. Nys did the same on the left but the Belgian champion hadn't noticed the lapped rider, Dutchman Ivar Hartogs, who was walking up the climb on the left. Nys ran into the rider, lost his balance and more importantly, lost contact with Stybar. "I couldn't avoid him. There was only one track where it was possible to ride up until the top and that's where he walked," Nys said to Sporza.

Albert and Nys chased hard and got back to within five seconds, but then Nys eased off, settling for third place. Stybar held on to his lead and won ahead of Albert. A disappointed Nys crossed the line half a minute later. Vantornout claimed fourth place ahead of Wellens, Aernouts and De Knegt.

Page rode a good race in contention for a top-10 result throughout the entire race. In the last laps, he disposed of Radomir Simunek (BKCP-Powerplus) and Enrico Franzoi (Liquigas), with a ninth place was within his grasp. Going in the final lap, Page passed a tired Sven Vanthourenhout and grabbed a noteworthy eighth place at little over a minute down from winner Stybar.

Full Results

Swipe to scroll horizontally
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team1:02:12
2Niels Albert (Bel) BKCP-Powerplus0:00:06
3Sven Nys (Bel) Landbouwkrediet - Colnago0:00:33
4Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team0:00:43
5Bart Wellens (Bel) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team0:00:50
6Bart Aernouts (Bel) Rabobank0:00:59
7Gerben De Knegt (Ned)0:01:03
8Jonathan Page (USA)0:01:17
9Radomir Simunek (Cze) BKCP-Powerplus0:01:19
10Erwin Vervecken (Bel)0:01:22
11Sven Vanthourenhout (Bel) Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team0:01:28
12Enrico Franzoi (Ita) Liquigas0:01:46
13Kevin Pauwels (Bel) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team0:02:09
14John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale0:02:31
15Francis Mourey (Fra) Française Des Jeux0:02:49
16Steve Chainel (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom0:03:13
17Petr Dlask (Cze) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team0:03:29
18Marco Bianco (Ita)0:03:39
19Mariusz Gil (Pol)0:03:53
20Martin Zlamalik (Cze)0:04:09
21Christian Heule (Swi)0:04:26
22Jan Verstraeten (Bel)0:04:43
23Nicolas Bazin (Fra) Continental Team Differdange0:05:09
24Kamil Ausbuher (Cze)0:05:24
25Egoitz Murgoitio Rekalde (Spa)0:05:26
26Isaac Suarez Fernandez (Spa)0:05:27
27Constantino Zaballa Gutierrez (Spa) La - Rota Dos Moveis0:05:29
28Patrick Van Leeuwen (Ned)0:05:38
29Arnaud Labbe (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom0:06:11
30Javier Ruiz De Larrinaga Ibanez (Spa)0:06:22
31Luca Damiani (Ita) Colavita / Sutter Home0:06:30
32Joachim Parbo (Den)0:06:36
33Alessandro Gambino (Ita)0:06:37
34Thijs Van Amerongen (Ned) Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team0:06:55
35David Seco Amundarain (Spa)0:07:11
36Unai Yus Kerejeta (Spa)0:07:14
37Daniel Ruiz Echeandia (Spa)0:07:51
-1lapJaroslav Kulhavy (Cze)Row 37 - Cell 2
-1lapRobert Glajza (Svk)Row 38 - Cell 2
-1lapMartin Haring (Svk)Row 39 - Cell 2
-1lapIvar Hartogs (Ned)Row 40 - Cell 2
-3lapsDavid Lozano Riba (Spa)Row 41 - Cell 2
DNFPawel Szczepaniak (Pol)Row 42 - Cell 2
DNFEddy Van Ijzendoorn (Ned)Row 43 - Cell 2
DNFMarek Canecky (Svk)Row 44 - Cell 2
DNFMatej Medved (Svk)Row 45 - Cell 2
DNFMilan Barenyi (Svk)Row 46 - Cell 2
DNSMartin Bina (Cze)Row 47 - Cell 2
DNSLukas Kloucek (Cze) Sunweb Pro Job Cycling teamRow 48 - Cell 2

World Cup standings after five rounds

Swipe to scroll horizontally
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResultHeader Cell - Column 3
1Niels Albert (Bel) BKCP-Powerplus370pts
2Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team365Row 1 - Cell 3
3Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team279Row 2 - Cell 3
4Sven Nys (Bel) Landbouwkrediet - Colnago270Row 3 - Cell 3
5Francis Mourey (Fra) Française Des Jeux256Row 4 - Cell 3
6Kevin Pauwels (Bel) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team236Row 5 - Cell 3
7Gerben De Knegt (Ned)228Row 6 - Cell 3
8Bart Aernouts (Bel) Rabobank213Row 7 - Cell 3
9Enrico Franzoi (Ita) Liquigas203Row 8 - Cell 3
10Christian Heule (Swi)202Row 9 - Cell 3
11Erwin Vervecken (Bel)192Row 10 - Cell 3
12Martin Zlamalik (Cze)183Row 11 - Cell 3
13Radomir Simunek (Cze) BKCP-Powerplus176Row 12 - Cell 3
14Petr Dlask (Cze) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team176Row 13 - Cell 3
15Steve Chainel (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom154Row 14 - Cell 3
16Mariusz Gil (Pol)153Row 15 - Cell 3
17Kamil Ausbuher (Cze)134Row 16 - Cell 3
18Thijs Van Amerongen (Ned) Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team132Row 17 - Cell 3
19Marco Bianco (Ita)130Row 18 - Cell 3
20Martin Bina (Cze)129Row 19 - Cell 3
21Thijs Al (Ned)129Row 20 - Cell 3
22Jan Verstraeten (Bel)126Row 21 - Cell 3
23Dieter Vanthourenhout (Bel) BKCP-Powerplus125Row 22 - Cell 3
24Jonathan Page (USA)119Row 23 - Cell 3
25Sven Vanthourenhout (Bel) Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team119Row 24 - Cell 3
26Patrick Van Leeuwen (Ned)102Row 25 - Cell 3
27Bart Wellens (Bel) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team93Row 26 - Cell 3
28Alessandro Gambino (Ita)93Row 27 - Cell 3
29Laurent Colombatto (Fra)89Row 28 - Cell 3
30Eddy Van Ijzendoorn (Ned)88Row 29 - Cell 3
31Wilant Van Gils (Ned)74Row 30 - Cell 3
32John Gadret (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale72Row 31 - Cell 3
33Jonathan Lopez (Fra)71Row 32 - Cell 3
34Fabio Ursi (Ita)65Row 33 - Cell 3
35Marcel Wildhaber (Swi)64Row 34 - Cell 3
36Ondrej Bambula (Cze)60Row 35 - Cell 3
37Rob Peeters (Bel) Landbouwkrediet - Colnago59Row 36 - Cell 3
38Ian Field (GBr)59Row 37 - Cell 3
39Jérome Chevallier (Fra)58Row 38 - Cell 3
40Luca Damiani (Ita) Colavita / Sutter Home57Row 39 - Cell 3
41Egoitz Murgoitio Rekalde (Spa)54Row 40 - Cell 3
42Ivar Hartogs (Ned)51Row 41 - Cell 3
43Nicolas Bazin (Fra) Continental Team Differdange48Row 42 - Cell 3
44Milan Barenyi (Svk)48Row 43 - Cell 3
45Johannes Sickmueller (Ger)48Row 44 - Cell 3
46Christoph Pfingsten (Ger)47Row 45 - Cell 3
47Javier Ruiz De Larrinaga Ibanez (Spa)43Row 46 - Cell 3
48Pawel Szczepaniak (Pol)41Row 47 - Cell 3
49David Derepas (Fra)37Row 48 - Cell 3
50Vaclav Metlicka (Svk)37Row 49 - Cell 3
51Robert Gavenda (Svk) Telenet-Fidea Cycling Team35Row 50 - Cell 3
52Philipp Walsleben (Ger) BKCP-Powerplus32Row 51 - Cell 3
53Lukas Kloucek (Cze) Sunweb Pro Job Cycling Team30Row 52 - Cell 3
54Robert Glajza (Svk)29Row 53 - Cell 3
55Martin Haring (Svk)28Row 54 - Cell 3
56Sascha Wagner (Ger)26Row 55 - Cell 3
57Isaac Suarez Fernandez (Spa)25Row 56 - Cell 3
58Roy Van Heeswijk (Ned)25Row 57 - Cell 3
59Constantino Zaballa Gutierrez (Spa) La - Rota Dos Moveis24Row 58 - Cell 3
60Joachim Parbo (Den)24Row 59 - Cell 3
61Arnaud Labbe (Fra) BBox Bouygues Telecom22Row 60 - Cell 3
62Marco Ponta (Ita)21Row 61 - Cell 3
63Jan Soetens (Bel) Revor-Jartazi Cyclingteam20Row 62 - Cell 3
64David Seco Amundarain (Spa)16Row 63 - Cell 3
65Vladimir Kyzivat (Cze)16Row 64 - Cell 3
66Unai Yus Kerejeta (Spa)15Row 65 - Cell 3
67Daniel Ruiz Echeandia (Spa)14Row 66 - Cell 3
68Jaroslav Kulhavy (Cze)13Row 67 - Cell 3
69Zdenek Mlynar (Cze)13Row 68 - Cell 3
70Jody Crawforth (GBr)11Row 69 - Cell 3
71Julien Pion (Fra)10Row 70 - Cell 3
72Jens Westergren (Swe)10Row 71 - Cell 3
73David Lozano Riba (Spa)9Row 72 - Cell 3
74Clément Bourgoin (Fra)9Row 73 - Cell 3
75Tommy Nielsen (Den)7Row 74 - Cell 3
76René Lang (Swi)6Row 75 - Cell 3
77Peter Presslauer (Aut)4Row 76 - Cell 3
78Marek Canecky (Svk)3Row 77 - Cell 3
79Andreas Moser (Swi)3Row 78 - Cell 3
80Gusty Bausch (Lux)2Row 79 - Cell 3
81Zoltan Tisza (Hun)2Row 80 - Cell 3
82Sascha Weber (Ger)1Row 81 - Cell 3
83Rafael Visinelli (Ita)1Row 82 - Cell 3

Latest on Cyclingnews