Ronhaar takes first win and Alvarado takes advantage of Van Empel's absence at the CX World Cup in Dendermonde

Pim Ronhaar makes his first victory in the top category of the CX World Cup. The Dutchman went solo mid-race and held the pace to raise his arms to the clouds of Dendermonde. Van der Haar was second, while Sweeck came in third. In the women's category, Alvarado took the victory in the absence of Van Empel.

Ronhaar takes first win ahead of Van der Haar and Sweeck

The race started with Kuypers in first position, but the freshness he showed in the first metres soon came to an end. The Belgian struggled to negotiate a curve and the lead passed to the legs of young Ryan Kamp. Meanwhile, bad luck came knocking on the door of British star Cameron Mason, one of the most talked-about names at the start of the season, when he broke several spokes on his front wheel in the first turn.

The favourites took a back seat in the early stages of the race. In their place, there were other riders less used to the top positions in the standings. A special mention goes to Toon Vandebosch, who took a few metres of advantage at the end of the first lap.

RECOMENDADO

Profile wheels: advantages, disadvantages and which ones are better

Top 5 gravel pedals

Garmin Edge GPS range, which one to choose?

Why is the stiffness of a frame so important?

What is heart rate variability and how does it affect the cyclist?

How does age affect performance and recovery?

Sweeck eventually caught Vandebosch and the two Crelan-Corendon riders formed the leading duo of the race. The pair went well until Sweek started to lose steam and dropped several metres. Vandebosch was again the sole leader, while Ronhaar put the watts machine to work and caught Sweeck.

Behind, Iserbyt, Van der Haar, Kamp and Adams were riding in a group about 20 seconds behind.

Fourth lap. Ronhaar and Sweeck were on Vandebosch's wheel. Van der Haar wanted to join the fight and, with the possibility of the leading trio having to deal with new members, Ronhaar accelerated the pace. The Dutch rider was able to open a gap of 8 seconds to the now chasing Sweeck, Vandebosch and Van der Haar.

Ronhaar held his own pace and, despite losing 17 seconds on the final lap, carried the weight of leading alone to reach the finish in Dendermonde in first position. The young rider tasted his first victory in the Elite category of the CX World Cup.

Van der Haar attacked on the last lap to take second place and extend his lead in the overall standings. Sweeck had to settle for third place on the podium.

Results Elite Men - CX World Cup Dendermonde

1. Pim Ronhaar 56'04"
2. Lars van der Haar +16’’
3. Laurens Sweek +27"
4. Eli Iserbyt +33’’
5. Gerben Kuypers +40"
6. Kevin Kuhn +42"
7. Jens Adams +45"
8. Joran Wyseure +48"
9. Toon Vandebosch +54"
10. Ryan Kamp +52’’

Alvarado takes advantage of Van Empel's absence to win in Dendermonde

Van der Heijden managed to take the lead at the start, although Brand took the lead soon after. However, it was Alvarado who wanted to make the difference from the start. The Dutchwoman of Dominican origin opened up a gap and was able to build up a lead of 14 seconds.

The mud tested the riders' skills and caused cracks of several seconds to open up between some of them. The errors came and went, but Alvarado was able to ride consistently and avoid making mistakes. Incidents punished many of the riders, who saw their chances of victory evaporate.

Brand was also on his own, while third place was a battle between Backsted and Norbert Riberolle.

The end of the race followed the expected script and Alvarado managed to reach the finish line in first position to win the Dendermonde CX World Cup. In this way, the Dutch rider was able to take advantage of Pieterse's and Van Empel's withdrawals to certify her first victory of the season in the competition.

Brand came second and the duel for third place went to Great Britain's Backsted, while Norbert Riberolle had to settle for fourth.

Results Elite Women - CX World Cup Dendermonde

1. Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado +55'45’’
2. Lucinda Brand +37"
3. Zoe Backsted 1'35"
4. Marion Norbert Riberolle +2'01"
5. Manon Bakker +2'11"
6. Kristyna Zemanova +2'22"
7. Aniek Van Alphen +2'27"
8. Laura Verdonschot +2'43"
9. Sanne Cant +2'47"
10. Alicia Franck +2'57"