Lucinda Brand dominates European cyclocross championships

November 6, 2021 c_admin Cycling Comments Off on Lucinda Brand dominates European cyclocross championships

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Lucinda Brand (Netherlands) won the 2021 European cyclocross championship at the Col du VAM, Netherlands.

The world champion’s form has been inconsistent since she returned from the early season World Cup races in the United States but today she put in a dominant performance to win by nearly a minute. Hungarian sensation Kata Blanka Vas took the silver medal, with Yara Kastelijn completing the podium.

“Apparently it was my day,’ Brand said afterward. ‘I felt strong, stronger than expected. It is definitely a tough course. I’m super-happy to take the victory, it was a goal. And now I’ve won all three championships, it’s really nice to add it to the palmarès.”

Well-known as the central feature in the classic women’s road race Ronde Van Drenthe, the Col du VAM is a man-made hill on a former landfill site, constructed specifically for cycling. A network of tarmac roads and mountain bike trails criss-cross the slopes.

Saturday’s 2.7-kilometer course looped up and down grassy meadows, and though there was some mud, the track was mostly firm and fast, resulting in short lap times. Every lap had 645 meters of climbing but, unusually for a ‘cross race, much of it was on a long smooth tarmac section. The lack of technical features, and the road climb, seemed to favor riders with road racing pedigree. The finish was on the 15 percent cobbled road at the hill’s summit.

The riders lined up under cold, overcast skies, with a strong wind whipping across the venue.

Vas was fastest away from the start, chased initially by Silvia Persico (Italy) until Persico slid off on a patch of deep mud at the bottom of a descent.

In the second lap, the race settled down, with Vas leading, followed by a phalanx of Dutch riders. Vas is eligible for the under-23 race but after her breakthrough World Cup win in Overijse the Hungarian champion elected to ride the Elite Women’s race.

Seeing Vas go into the pits on the second lap, and knowing that the pits were running slow, Brand attacked hard.

Vas didn’t panic, heading the chase group and stretching the elastic. Of the other Dutch riders only Kastelijn and Ceylin Del Carmen Alvarado were strong enough to hold on to the Hungarian. By the end of the fourth lap of seven, Vas and Kastelijn were 34 seconds behind, with Del Carmen Alvarado a further 5 seconds back.

Brand was clearly on a good day. She never looked in trouble, consistently nailing the fastest lines and putting the power down on the climbs.

With Brand’s lead looking assured, Kastelijn began testing Vas. She drew clear on a tough stretch of flat ground that was so muddy the riders had to run with their bikes but Vas was alert to the attack and quickly shut it down.

Over the last two laps Kastelijn repeatedly tried to use her climbing ability to get away. The Hungarian responded on the technical descents.

Defending champion Alvarado showed last weekend that she is slowly coming back into form and that trajectory continued today. She dug deep to stay in contention until the fatigue bit on the final lap when she clipped a barrier, going over the handlebars. She swiftly remounted but the chance of a medal had disappeared.

As we go deeper into the season a resurgent Alvarado will surely be challenging for victories again.

Brand climbed the cobbles with a broad smile and at the finishing line, she stopped, held her Trek Boone aloft, and walked casually across the line. Behind her, Vas opened up a slim gap on the final climb and held it to the line for a solid silver medal.

Tomorrow’s racing comprises the men’s junior, women’s under-23 and men’s elite categories. The weather forecast promises a high chance of rain, so the course could change significantly during the day.

1 Lucinda Brand (Netherlands): 48.22
2 Kata Blanka Vas (Hungary): +0.56
3 Yara Kastelijn (Netherlands): +1.02
4 Ceylin Del Carmen Alvarado (Netherlands): +1.28
5 Denise Betsema (Netherlands): +2.01