Van Anrooij celebrates her win in Gavere(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
Van Anrooij, Brand, and Pieterse on the final podium(Image credit: Luc ClaessenGetty Images)
Shirin van Anrooij (Baloise Trek Lions) soloed to her second win of the season at the 11th round of the UCI World Cup in Gavere.
The 20-year-old prevailed in the mud over her Trek teammate Lucinda Brand by 37 seconds after the pair had tussled with each other during the closing laps of the race. The former world champion faded badly on the final lap, however.
Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck) rounded out the podium 50 seconds later, while in fourth place, 18-year-old Zoe Backstedt (EF Education-Tibco-SVB) scored the best World Cup result of her career at 1:01 down.
"It was super hard, and I was just riding my own lines," Van Anrooij said after the race. "I just felt really strong but then on the third lap on the long climb, I tried to ride my bike for too long, and my legs were just empty. Then I decided to run almost everywhere, which was easier for me. But it was super hard.
"At first, I was riding at the front, and I didn't know that Puck wasn't in my wheel anymore because I just didn't look back, and I was riding my own pace. I saw Lucinda coming closer, but I knew the final part suited me well because that's where I could ride away from Puck. I just tried to keep the pressure and ride my own race, and it worked."
It was Pieterse who was in control early on, the woman in second place in the overall World Cup rankings starting the day as the top favourite with series leader Fem van Empel (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) absent after a big crash in Val di Sole.
However, by the start of the second lap of four, Van Anrooij had caught and passed her fellow Dutchwoman to take the lead. Pieterse then fell back into the clutches of Brand and Blanka Vas (SD Worx), her progress further hindered by a chunk of mud jamming her rear wheel.
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At the midway point, Van Anrooij was almost 20 seconds clear of her closest competitor, Brand, who put in a huge effort to close the gap on lap three.
The pair briefly rode side by side and almost came together at one point, but for Brand, the big chase had taken too much out of her to stay in the lead. Van Anrooij pushed on and opened the gap once more, putting 12 seconds into her teammate by the start of the final lap.
The gap would only get larger as the pair raced towards the finish line, resulting in a resounding victory for the younger woman.
Further back, Vas looked solid in third place for much of the mid-section of the race, but the young Hungarian faltered partway through the final lap with Pieterse and Backstedt in close pursuit. The pair swept past Vas, consigning her to fifth place at the line.
The result doesn't change the top of the World Cup standings, with Van Empel still in the lead with 330 points despite her absence from the race. Pieterse's podium brings her 25 points closer, but she still lies some way away on 290 points. Van Anrooij's win brings her 40 points, but she remains some way off the lead in third on 199 points.
Dani Ostanek is Senior News Writer at Cyclingnews, having joined in 2017 as a freelance contributor, later being hired full-time. Her favourite races include Strade Bianche, the Tour de France Femmes, Paris-Roubaix, and Tro-Bro Léon.
