A lose-lose outcome
The controversial decision came after a lengthy review of the sprint to the finish, which showed Schreiber deviating slightly from her course, but without causing Brand to slow down, as the two raced together towards the line. In the end, Schreiber crossed the line first and celebrated – until she was relegated to second place. Brand’s Dutch teammate Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, who had been at the front with Schreiber and Brand for much of the race, finished third, 17 seconds adrift.
Here, for those interested, is the video of that sprint.
The decision to relegate Schreiber has been universally slammed, including by world champion Brand. “Look, I didn’t ask for a review or anything,” she said before the decision was announced. “I already had the feeling myself that I just didn’t have quite enough speed to make it over.”
She said that Schreiber was especially strong on the 99 steps riders had to climb every lap. “[Team coach] Gerben [de Knegt] asked me about it, and I said, ‘Yeah, we don’t need to ask for that footage again.’ It’s okay with me—she was the best. And I just wasn’t fast enough, and I also knew it would be really tough if it came down to a sprint. . . . I’ve never experienced anything like this before. Normally there’s euphoria, but there isn’t any now.”
Until this disappointment, the 23-year-old Schreiber was having the best season of her young career, with five wins and two podiums from seven races; this would have been her sixth win from eight. She was furious, of course. “The UCI, the UEC always emphasize that they want a clean sport, but then they do this?” she said. “It also isn’t fair either. We reviewed the footage . . . and Lucinda said I did nothing wrong. She couldn’t have passed me anyway. I am really thankful that she says this, but it doesn’t change the commissaires’ decision.”
Schreiber said that her move to the left was unintentional and did not impact the result. “I did not close the door on purpose or anything. Lucinda knows it, she also says it. I think it’s disrespectful to steal the biggest moment of my career. I think for being fair, everyone knows I won. If it would have been decided by two centimeters I can argue with them, I can understand. But like this, it’s disrespectful.”
The decision led to the saddest medal ceremony I’ve ever seen, with Brand and Alvarado, her left wrist injured due to a fall on the final lap, standing glumly on the podium and Schreiber nowhere to be seen. “I was going to go because I thought everyone would hate me if I don’t,” Schreiber explained. “But then it’s like if they’re being like this to me, I also don’t owe them anything.”
One man, one vote
The controversy turned to scandal Monday when HLN.be reported that neither the nine Dutch race commissaires nor Brand were consulted on the decision, which apparently goes against protocol. Rather, it was made by one man, the president of the race jury, Ernesto Maggioni, who just happens to be the same individual who disqualified Lorena Wiebes after she won stage 1 of the Giro d’Italia Women. And Wiebes and Schreiber just happen to be teammates on the SD Worx Protime team.
To refresh your memory, Wiebes was disqualified from the Giro when her bike was found to be 0.02g too light. Maggioni was the technical commissioner at the Giro, not jury president, and HLN.be asserted that he was responsible for checking the bikes and imposing Wiebes’ suspension.
That decision was furiously disputed by the team, which had weighed the bike as well and found it correct. SD Worx threatened to sue but has taken no legal action yet. Schreiber’s Luxembourg federation, FSCL, is also disputing the decision, with Wielerflits.nl reporting that the FSCL has lodged an appeal with the UEC.
Stay tuned. We’ll surely be hearing more soon.
Belgian sweep in men’s race adds to Dutch misery
The Dutch hosts suffered another embarrassment, but of a different kind, when three Belgians – Thibau Nys, Joran Wyseure and Niels Vandeputte – finished 1-2-3 in Sunday’s Elite Men’s race. Joris Nieuwenhuis was the best Dutch finisher, in fourth, 20 seconds behind the winner and 1 second off the podium.
Nys, who turns 24 on November 12, initiated a breakaway on lap 4 of 9, eventually forming a leading trio with Wyseure and Kevin Kuhn of Switzerland. The chasers never got closer than 9 seconds over the rest of the race, as Nys or Wyseure simply accelerated to maintain a viable lead. Kuhn eventually faded and finished fifth, just behind Nieuwenhuis.
The race eventually came down to the two Belgians, both of whom were in top form. Wyseure had won two of six races and finished on the podium in another, while Nys won the only race he’d started; he is still perfect for the season. His excellent start stands in stark contrast to his season on the road, which was eminently forgettable: two third places on Vuelta stages and a DNF in the World Championships.
“It was a tough one,” he said after the race. “I think it was a hard and a really nice battle with Joran [Wyseure]. He was super strong and it was really difficult to get rid of each other,” Nys said after the race. “So I felt, halfway through the race, that it would be a big explosion in the last lap. I mean, [the course] is quite hard, but on the other hand, it is quite difficult also to make a gap.”
He noted that the uphill section to the finish line was quite difficult: “And especially when you have to pull in the front on the section on the road [to] the finish line. It takes away a lot of energy and it was a bit of a gamble over there.”
Nys has rarely looked stronger in the discipline. But eventually he will have to test himself against fellow Belgian Wout van Aert and the Dutch eight-time world champion in the discipline, Mathieu van der Poel.
“There is a lot more to come,” he said. “For me, every race is just as important as another one. Next week is just as important as today’s European Championships. So, yes, I will try to let the jersey shine.”
2026 Elite Women’s European Cyclocross Championship
| Pos. | Rider | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lucinda Brand | Netherlands | 51:37 |
| 2 | Marie Schreiber | Luxembourg | same time |
| 3 | Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado | Netherlands | +0:07 |
| 4 | Inge van der Heijden | Netherlands | +0:17 |
| 5 | Denise Betsema | Netherlands | +0:20 |
2026 Elite Men’s European Cyclocross Championship
| Pos. | Rider | Nation | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thibau Nys | Belgium | 59:37 |
| 2 | Joran Wyseure | Belgium | +0:07 |
| 3 | Niels Vandeputte | Belgium | +0:19 |
| 4 | Joris Nieuwenhuis | Netherlands | +0:20 |
| 5 | Kevin Kuhn | Switzerland | +0:20 |