Daphny Van Den Brand wins UCI Cyclo-Cross World Cup#3 – Cycling Update
AA Drink/Leontien.nl Team’s Daphny van den Brand showed a terrific performance in the UCI Cyclo-Cross World Cup round three. The European champion proved unbeatable and easily outclassed World Champion Marianne Vos (Nederland Bloeit) and US national champion
Katherine Compton (Rabobank-Giant Offroad team) in Koksijde on Sunday.
Daphny claimed her first World Cup race of the season with a timing of 43 minutes and 13 seconds.
Marianne Vos was in the runner-up’s spot with 13 seconds down to Daphny and it was the first Cyclo-cross race for Marianne.
After finishing the stage Van den Brand told the media, "The sand was harder than yesterday. It's very hard to make a track. Not a lot of the women make it through the sand on the bike whereas the men ride more in the tracks and that's a pity for us".
Previously, Daphny won the UCI Cyclo-cross European Championship and Netherlands National Championship Cyclo-cross in 2007. She also took the first place in Hoogerheide and Lievin.
Van den Brand and Vos worked together in the first lap of the race. Den Brand managed to establish a powerful lead. However, Vos displayed a good effort and managed to leap across Brand’s lead.
Compton and Sanne Van Paassen (Brainwash Wielerploeg) exchanged acceleration as they consistently pursued the leaders. However, after a few kilometres, Compton managed to move ahead of Paassen.
In the final lap, Vos, failing to hold her pace, slowed down on the exhausting sandy course. Meanwhile, Daphny controlled the situation and crossed the finish-line first, ahead of the other cyclists.
Compton finished third with a difference of 31 seconds and said, "They said one minute and right after that, they started the race. I missed my pedal in the start and got stuck behind people. I'm a little frustrated. I didn't have it today. The sand is unforgiving
if you're not good".
Sanne Van Paassen grabbed the fourth place, with a difference of 1 minute and 7 seconds ahead of Sanne Cant (Boxx Veldritacademie) and Helen Wyman (Kona Factory Racing).
Van den Brand took the overall World Cup with 150 points, with Van Paassen trailing behind by 15 points. Compton was in the third place with 105 points.
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