Nys shows class in Overijse

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Belgian champion Sven Nys (Landbouwkrediet) netted his second win of the weekend by excelling in the cyclo-cross classic of Overijse, the so-called “grape cross” near Brussels in Belgium. On the muddy and hilly course, Nys attacked just before the midway point of the race and the 34-year-old Belgian champion went on to show his skills on the technical drops and his power on the steep climbs. In an exciting race, Nys held off a counter-attack from Kevin Pauwels (Telenet-Fidea) and Dutch champion Lars Boom (Rabobank). It is the tenth victory of the season for Nys, this time well ahead of Pauwels and Klaas Vantornout (Sunweb-Revor).

“A double victory in a cross weekend, it’s been a long time. I'm very satisfied. Especially with Lars [Boom] in the mix, it was a punchy race. He did it perfectly with a powerful start while we had yesterday's hard race in our legs. When I saw Boom coming back I tried to save something in case he joined me. He's a real champion and it's too bad he didn't choose to concentrate on cyclo-cross.”

Boom did left his mark in Overijse. The former cyclo-cross world champion blasted away right after the start but was then stopped as he misjudged a corner and hit a pole. Despite some technical errors, Boom always rode in the top 5 on the demanding course and confirmed with the fastest lap time of the day that he was clearly heading for a podium result. His strong ride was halted when he had an ill-timed flat tyre on the penultimate lap. “It was over for me with that, but apart from that I'm glad that I was able to ride near the front,” Boom said. He eventually finished seventh.

When Boom disappeared from the front, Pauwels wasn't able to close the gap with Nys on his own and he settled for second place, well ahead of Klaas Vantornout (Sunweb-Revor). Pauwels' third consecutive podium result in Overijse earned him an additional € 2500.

“Second place isn't bad. After a small crash I lost some positions and by the time I returned Nys was gone. He was a bit stronger today but without that crash I might have been able to stay with him a bit longer,” Pauwels said. Pauwels realized that Boom's flat tyre was a key moment in their effort to bridge up with Nys. “That didn't help me to get back with Nys. I didn't expect him to ride that well. He's a special one,” Pauwels said.

Behind Nys, Boom and Pauwels it was Vantornout who emerged as the best of the rest. On Saturday Vantornout had claimed second place but on Sunday he wasn't able to stay up there in the fight with Nys. “Winning wasn't possible today because I felt right away that I hadn't recovered from yesterday's race. I'm glad I'm on the podium once again,” Vantornout said.

Bart Aernouts (Rabo – Giant Offroad) finished fourth, just ahead of young Tom Meeusen (Telenet-Fidea), who showed great technical skills during the first laps. Niels Albert narrowly survived the first selection but he was never in contention for the victory. Jonathan Page (Planetbike) managed a decent thirteenth place, which was well ahead of Bart Wellens (Telenet-Fidea), who had a complete off-day.

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