Eli Iserbyt criticizes the level of men’s cyclocross and calls for women’s races to get prime-time slots

Eli Iserbyt believes that women's cyclocross is providing a superior spectacle compared to men's at the start of this season. The former Belgian rider has harshly criticized the performance of his former rivals and suggests reversing the race schedules so that women compete after men, at least until Wout van Aert returns.

"Aside from Michael Vanthourenhout, no one is at the level"

Iserbyt, who had to retire from professional cycling in January 2026 due to a vascular issue that prevented him from continuing to compete, is still very much involved in cyclocross. And his first impressions of the 2026-2027 season are not particularly positive.

In an interview with the Belgian newspaper Het Laatste Nieuws, the former European champion has questioned the performance of a good part of the men's peloton.

For Iserbyt, Michael Vanthourenhout is practically the only rider who is meeting expectations. His former teammate has won four of his first five races, while he believes other important names have failed to take advantage of the absence of Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert.

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He has been particularly critical of Niels Vandeputte, the current UCI ranking leader, whom he reproaches for not starting the season with greater ambition. He believes that riders like him should take advantage of these weeks to accumulate victories before the big stars return.

He also questions whether the generation of cyclists situated between the major dominators and the younger talents has enough level to become regular winners.

Iserbyt proposes changing cyclocross schedules to give prominence to women

His assessment completely changes when he talks about women's cyclocross. Iserbyt believes that women's races are more exciting and competitive, highlighting riders like Marie Schreiber, Fem van Empel, Lucinda Brand, and Denise Betsema. To the point of suggesting a change in the scheduling of competitions:

"It would be more logical for women to start at 15:00 and men at 13:00".

Iserbyt recalls that this formula was already tested in Iowa, United States, although he claims that around 80% of the audience left the venue after the men's race. Now he wonders if the same would happen and considers it could be an interesting experiment while Van Aert does not return.

The return of Van Aert could change the landscape

The Belgian believes that the situation could change significantly with the return of Wout van Aert. Although the Visma-Lease a Bike rider has not yet confirmed his winter schedule, Iserbyt considers it possible that he will reappear in early December and sees his participation in the Antwerp World Cup on December 19 as particularly likely.

Meanwhile, cyclocross faces one of its most emblematic events this Sunday, November 1, the Koppenbergcross, which Iserbyt has won three times. For this edition, he points to Thibau Nys as the main candidate for victory, although he warns that injuries suffered during his road season could affect his performance.

The event opens a particularly intense November, with the European Championship and the first dates of the World Cup, whose dates can be consulted in the complete cyclocross calendar 2026-2027.