Marianne Vos (Jumbo-Visma) won her first race of the cyclocross campaign by defeating Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Alpecin-Deceuninck) in a two-up sprint at the end of the X2O Trofee Kortrijk.
The duo spent of the race off the front in the company of Denis Betsema (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), who dragged the leaders clear of the rest on the second lap.
Betsema piled on the pressure thereafter until Alvarado surged to the front on the final lap. Her technical skills saw her distance Betsema, but Vos held firm and also resisted a late onslaught on the final short climbs on the urban circuit.
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Alvarado led out the slightly uphill final sprint from distance, but Vos’ superior turn of speed won the day.
“The race was very fast all the time. Betsema put a very high pace and when Alvarado came with us, I actually knew she would try something on the last lap," Vos said afterwards. "She took some advantage and I wanted to stay of course as close as possible to be able to fight for the win.
"On the last lap, I just gave everything. Of course, the sand pit was one of the points where you needed to stay focused and not make any mistakes in finding the pedals again. And then from the last corner, it was just a full sprint to the line.”
Betsema came home in third place, while Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) took fourth ahead of Sanne Cant.
Zoe Bäckstedt (EF Education-TIBCO-SVB) set the tone for the race by taking up the lead from the gun and dictating a rapid pace. Alvarado, meanwhile, was forced into the pit lane almost immediately after the start for a bike change, but despite losing some early ground, she worked her way back up towards the head of affairs come the end of the first of six laps.
By then, Brand and Vos were at the front of the race, with Betsema giving chase just four seconds behind. Betsema bridged up early on the second lap, while Brand slipped away from the front after taking a tumble while attempting a rapid remount.
On the third lap, Alvarado succeeded in getting back on terms with Betsema and Vos, and the race settled into a clear pattern. Betsema, eager to maintain her time advantage in the overall standings, forced the pace with Vos locked onto her wheel and Alvarado battling to stay in touch on each corner.
Brand and Cant, meanwhile, led the chasers, but at the midpoint, it was already apparent that the trio ahead of them would contest the win.
Betsema’s onslaught continued for another two laps, but Vos and Alvarado held firm. On the final lap, meanwhile, Alvarado sensed her opportunity, diving through the inside line on a tight corner. Betsema was distanced but Vos, as ever, was wise to the move.
From there, it was a straight duel between Alvarado and Vos. Alvarado made several attempts to distance Vos, most notably on the climb up to the bridge and once again through the sandpit. Vos, though breathing heavily, had her measure and there was an inevitability about the sprint.
Alvarado led into the gently climbing finishing straight, but Vos produced a ferocious finish to take her 108th cyclocross win.
Betsema came home in third, 10 seconds down, and her forcing brought the consolation prize of the overall lead in the X20 Trofee ahead of the absent Fem van Empel.
“I think it’s tough for everybody. If it’s fast, that’s the hard part of cyclocross,” Vos said of Betsema’s pace. “It’s a beautiful lap here, it has everything in it. It was fun.”
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