Wout van Aert (Jumbo-Visma) rode solo for five laps and reigned supreme at World Cup Zonhoven Sunday. Matheiu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) rode clear of the top World Cup leaders to settle for second, 1:23 behind Van Aert.
The battle for the final podium spot was a heated contest for World Cup points, series leader Laurens Sweeck (Crelans-Fristads) holding a 13-point advantage over Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), with two races remaining. Across the back half of the final lap, Sweeck launched a vicious attack and distanced Vanthourenhout to secure the final spot on the podium, 1:31 off the winning time, and enough points to retain his series lead.
A familiar pattern with race favourites developed on the early laps of the elite men’s race in Zonhoven, but Van Aert proved he had power in the sand and he took advantage of a few mistakes by his main adversary Van der Poel to capture his second World Cup victory of the season, last winning in Dublin.
“It was definitely a hard hike,” Van Aert said, laughing at the finish. “It was really tough [course], with an extra time through the Kuil. For me I also liked the extra uphill section, running. This is definitely more spectacular.”
The expected battle between Van Aert and Van der Poel sputtered and tried to come to life as the Dutchman closed a gap to Van Aert halfway through the third circuit. However, Van der Poel crashed in the sand for a second time and Van Aert pushed ahead.
After the race Van der Poel said his feelings were “not good”. The Dutchman scored three World Cup victories headed into the new year but his nagging back pain returned last Thursday, playing into a big sand defeat behind Van Aert in the X2O Trofee race in Koksijde.
“I just think it’s really hard to focus. The only thing I’m thinking about is my back and it’s hurting,” Van der Poel admitted at the finish. “You have to be 100% focused on the course and I’m just not able to. I can maybe ride half a lap as I want, then I have to hold back because of the pain. It’s super frustrating.”
How it unfolded
Sweeck stormed to the front of the new course, which had dried considerably since the earlier races. The World Cup leader set the pace with all the favourites in tow, Van der Poel and Van Aert making a pass before the first drop into the Kuil sandpit. In that section, Van der Poel slid out and tumbled on the descent, which allowed Van Aert to ride to the front and create immediate separation. Sweeck then went on the attack with Vanthourenhout, Van der Poel, and Lars van der Haar (Baloise Trek Lions).
On the second circuit of the 2.3km course, Van der Poel and Vanthourenhout had made the catch of Van Aert and held a nine-second lead over Van der Haar and Sweeck. Kevin Kuhn (Tormans Cyclo Cross) led a group of five chasers another five seconds back that included Alpecin-Deceuninck duo Toon Vandebosch and Niels Vandeputte, Joris Nieuwenhuis (Baloise Trek Lions) and Timon Rüegg (Cross Team Legendre).
The lead trio stayed together for only half a lap as Van Aert surged again in the sand and created a gap on his two companions. Van der Poel would not let the Belgian champion out of sight as he matched his adversary with power. Vanthourenhout joined forces with Sweeck in the chase of the big two, 18 seconds in arrears as the third lap progressed.
Van der Poel caught back to Van Aert on the third lap but wobbled in the deep ruts and crashed abruptly again in the large sand section, which allowed Van Aert a free rein to dash ahead. The delay allowed Vanthourenhout and Sweeck to make the catch and now Van der Poel was in chase mode again, this time with company, while almost 30 seconds back rode Van der Haar in solo fifth position.
Van Aert continued to carve a fast pace in the sand and on the technical off-cambers, building a lead of one minute to the trio of chasers through the midpoint of the race, sliding in a few sections but not going down.
"At the start of the race, I tried to take advantage of Mathieu van der Poel’s errors. When he fell in front of me, I managed to establish a significant gap," he said.
With three laps to go, Quinten Hermans (Alpecin-Deceuninck) had caught Van der Haar and they dug in to close down 23 seconds to the trio ahead. It was on the sixth descent into the giant sand pit that Van der Poel rode cleanly and created a gap on Sweeck and Vanthourenhout.
Despite his ailing back, Van der Poel continued his push to a second-place finish, never facing a showdown at the front with a surging Van Aert but also no one charging from the back. While Sweeck, a sand specialist, managed to break away from his companion, the World Cup leader finished eight seconds behind Van der Poel. Vanthourenhout lost his steam and was 31 seconds behind Sweeck, holding off Hermans by six seconds.
Sweeck padded his World Cup lead Sunday and moved to 24 points ahead of Vanthourenhout, two races remaining in Benidorm and Bensançon after national championships next weekend. A non-starter on Sunday was third-placed Eli Iserbyt (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), who holds a three-point margin over Van der Haar.
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