Thibau Nys Wins European Cyclo-Cross Championships

The victory by the son of cyclo-cross legend Sven Nys was all the more impressive as it came after a full and successful road race season and following an illness that disrupted the beginning of his cyclo-cross campaign.

The race began under a blazing sun and temperatures of 24°C, a great day for a swim. But there was no water on the fast Pontevedra course, which meant that the race was run at blazing speeds. “It’s a super difficult race because it’s so fast and difficult to make a gap,” Nys told Eurosport after his big win. “So I went into the race with the feeling of just letting it happen, you know, and try to adapt in every scenario.”

He added: “I didn’t expect to have so much control from the start. It was all clear in my head and I knew exactly what I had to do. The moment I took the front, I had full control over the race.”

The first half of the race basically consisted of two Belgian co-favourites, Iserbyt and defending two-time champion Michael Vanthourenhout, trying to wear down their Dutch rivals by taking turns at the front and upping the pace.

Dutch rider Pim Ronhaar then disrupted that strategy by riding to the front, lifting the pace and putting pressure on the Belgians. But the nature of the course made it difficult to open a lasting gap and there were about 20 riders in touch at the front at the midpoint of the race, on lap 5 of 9 laps. That is where Orts took matters into his hands.

At a technical section of the course, which the Spaniard must know like the back of his hand, he attacked and quickly opened a gap, with Iserbyt and Nys in hot pursuit. Eventual Nys and Orts were alone at the front, with the dogged Iserbyt trailing by about 10 meters, and by 3 seconds at the start of lap 6.

Felipe Orts Lloret, Michael Vanthourenhout, Eli Iserbyt and Thibau Nys in action. © Profimedia

Iserbyt finally caught the leading duo on lap 6, and they were then caught by Dutch rider Lars van der Haar and Belgium’s Niels Vandeputte, creating a five-rider lead group. But not for long, for when Iserbyt rode into the pits to get a fresh bike, Nys and Orts pounced. They upped the pace again, and this time no one could follow. Their lead over Iserbyt and the pursuing group was 11 seconds after lap 7 and 12 seconds after lap 8.

Nys always looked to be more technically secure and fitter than his Spanish travelling companion, and when Orts declined to ride over the planks on the final lap, carrying his bike to avoid crashing and thereby losing a podium finish, the young Belgian opened a gap and was never again threatened.

Nys, who will turn 22 on November 12, went out of his way to express his gratitude to the Spaniard after the race, saying that he was the “best guy” to be riding with. “He’s super strong and I knew before coming here he would really be ready for this. I think it was really a big goal for him to be really good over here. To have him with me is perfect because we understand each other really good. And we were both riding full for the podium spot. So it’s perfect.”

Nys was clearly overcome by his victory, as he wept openly on the podium during the playing of the Belgian anthem. His triumph announced the arrival of another multi-discipline champion in the world cycling peloton. He won the Tour of Hungary, three stages of the Tour of Poland and a stage of the Tour de Suisse in 2024 and may soon be ready to challenge the likes of Mathieu van der Poel and Remco Evenepoel in the spring Classics.

As for the Belgian strategy of trying to wear down their Dutch rivals, it worked like a charm because the Netherlands placed only one rider in the top 10, two-time European champion van der Haar. There were six Belgians in the top 10 as well as Orts, the French rider David Menut, who finished sixth, and the Czech veteran Michael Boroš, who came eighth.