Nys slips, crashes and wins
In the Elite Men’s race, Nys overcame two serious errors on the same cambered corner to win going away, aided by Baloise Glowi Lions teammate Lars van der Haar’s clever riding, Cameron Mason’s bad start and a late crash by the in-form Joren Nieuwenhuis that took him out of the running for the podium. Van der Haar finished second, 3 seconds behind, with Mason (Seven Racing) completing the podium at 5 seconds. Nieuwenhuis (Ridley Racing) crossed the line in sixth place, 32 seconds adrift. Nys now has a big lead in the World Cup standings with 80 points, to 51 for Laurens Sweeck (Crelan-Corendon), who finished fifth, and 49 for van der Haar.
“It’s going really good,” Nys said after the race. “I’m super happy to be in front for the whole race, together with Lars van der Haar, and understanding each other so good. It was a team victory today.” The win was especially impressive as he had to recover from two slips in the same spot on laps 6 and 8 of the 9-lap race. In the first he dropped his chain but managed to fix it quickly; in the second he hit the ground but was also able to make a fast recovery, helped by van der Haar’s taking control of the lead group.
“Exactly, two times on the same corner,” Nys admitted. “I had some difficulties over there, but for the rest, I felt really good. Maybe not a super day like at Tábor [the previous Sunday’s World Cup win], but a good feeling, and it was just about making sure I had two really fast laps in the final. At the moment I wanted to make my acceleration, I think something happened with Joris [Nieuwenhuis], and that gave me some bonus seconds, and it was just full gas to the finish line.”
What happened was that Nieuwenhuis lost the grip of his rear wheel on a slick grassy patch on lap 7 and crashed. He also dropped the chain of his bike and it took some time to repair it. By the time he remounted, his race was over. Mason endured another bad start, unclipping from his pedal at the start of the race, and then having to ride through the entire peloton to catch the leaders, which he did on lap 6.
He became part of a five-rider lead group – including, Nys, Nieuwenhuis, van der Haar and Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck) – who rode together into lap 7. But then Nieuwenhuis crashed, which Nys took as his cue to attack. At the end of the lap he had a lead of 9 seconds over Mason and van der Haar, and 16 seconds over Vandeputte. He was never troubled again.
Van Alphen dominates
In the Elite Women’s race, van Alphen took the lead midway through the first of six laps and gradually increased her lead, riding a superb solo to win the first World Cup race of her career. French champion Amandine Fouquenet (Arkéa–B&B Hotels) was a popular second-place finisher, 16 seconds adrift, outkicking Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck) in the final 200 meters. The 2023-24 World Cup champion, Alvarado was riding her first race of the season, after recovering from a knee injury, and finished 22 seconds behind the winner.
“I can’t believe I rode almost an entire cross on my own,” the delighted van Alphen said. “I just rode my own pace. It was wonderful with all the spectators along the course. I really enjoyed it this way.”
Asked when she felt that she had a chance to win, she said, “I felt quite good in the first lap already… I’m super happy that I now have that win, and that it’s also in a World Cup. That’s really beautiful and a reward for all the hard work.” She now leads the competition with 61 points, to 49 for Fouquenet and 47 for van der Heijden, who finished a disappointing fourth.
With three-time world champion Fem van Empel (Visma–Lease a Bike) still on the sidelines due to an unspecified illness and serial winner Lucinda Brand (Baloise Glowi Lions) skipping the race in favor of more training, this was always going to be an open race – though European champion Inge van der Heijden (Crelan- Corendon came in as a slight favorite and no one knew what Alvarado’s form was like.
Van Alphen had a lead of 21 seconds at the end of lap 3, as Alvarado, Fouquenet, van der Heijden and Leonie Bentfeld (Pauwels Sauzen–Altez Industriebouw) worked hard to reduce the gap. But they could make no inroads on the leader and the lead remained the same, give or take a second or two, as the laps went by. Eventually Fouquenet and Alvarado found themselves alone in the race for second and put on a thrilling show. Their back and forth duel came down to the final lap, with Alvarado superior on the technical parts of the course and the corners and Fouquenet stronger on the climbs and straights. The French champion eventually wore down her rival and took her best ever World Cup finish, 16 seconds behind the winner, with Alvarado a further 6 seconds behind..
“I’m proud of myself, the work paid off,” Fouquenet said. “I’m very happy. The crowd was here for me. That helped me a lot, especially on the last lap.”
Top 5 Elite Men – Flamanville CX World Cup 2025
- Thibau Nys, Baloise Glowi Lions 1:03:01
- Lars van der Haar, Baloise Glowi Lions +0:03
- Cameron Mason, Seven Racing +0:05
- Niels Vandeputte, Alpecin-Deceuninck +0:23
5. Laurens Sweeck, Crelan-Corendon +0:26
Top 5 Elite Women – Flamanville CX World Cup 2025
- Aniek van Alphen, Seven Racing 47:26
2. Amandine Fouquenet, Arkéa–B&B Hotels Women +0:16 - Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, Fenix-Deceuninck +0:22
4. Inge van der Heijden,Crelan–Corendon +0:44
5. Leonie Bentveld, Pauwels Sauzen–Altez Industriebouw +0:50
