Cyclocross world champs 2026: no new illness in Belgian cyclocross camp

There was a moment of panic within the Belgian cyclocross camp on Saturday. Due to an outbreak of the norovirus, several Belgian World Championship participants fell ill, but thanks to additional measures, no new cases have been reported. This was reported by Sporza.

Earlier rumors suggested it might be food poisoning, but team doctor Kris Van der Mieren quickly dismissed this as a myth. It turns out to be the norovirus. This is a highly contagious virus that often causes an acute gastrointestinal infection.

"I want to make it clear that we did everything possible to prevent this situation," Van der Mieren said yesterday in an interview with Het Laatste Nieuws. "But such a virus, figuratively speaking, can slip through any crack. We are doing our utmost, but this is simply very unfortunate and unfortunately unavoidable."

National coach Angelo De Clercq could not count on Zita Peeters (junior women), Shanyl De Schoesitter (under-23 women), Julie Brouwers (elite women), and Kay De Bruyckere (under-23 men) due to this wave of illness. De Bruyckere even had to be transported to hospital, but the promising rider is now doing much better.

Niels Vandeputte
And there is more good news, as additional measures have nipped the further spread of the norovirus in the bud. No new cases have appeared. Niels Vandeputte reportedly still felt a bit weak yesterday, but according to coach De Clercq, everything is now back to normal.