World champion Fem van Empel withdrew after half a lap in the Koppenbergcross 2025. The Visma | Lease a Bike rider shook her head "no" at the material zone and dismounted. Even afterwards, she kept shaking her head "no" for a long time when talking with her entourage..
Van Empel was visibly emotional at the moment of her withdrawal, after having started well earlier. Last week, she also had to forfeit the Druivencross in Overijse, another classic on the cyclocross calendar just like the Koppenbergcross.
According to her team, she was not fully fit at that time, having earlier that week celebrated her fiftieth career cyclocross victory at the Exact Cross Heerdestrand. Van Empel won the last three editions of the Koppenbergcross.
After the race, Visma | Lease a Bike communicated to Sporza that Van Empel had not sufficiently recovered from an illness that flared up earlier this week. Van Empel quickly felt she had no strength in her legs. Whether the Lokeren cross and next week's European Championships are also at risk is still unknown.
🚵🇧🇪 | What's happening here? Fem van Empel dismounts after just the first lap. The world champion seems to feel completely unwell. 🙁 #Koppenbergcross
📺 Stream the cross on HBO Max pic.twitter.com/frwGQFwpiY
— Eurosport Nederland (@Eurosport_NL) November 1, 2025
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2025 |  Lucinda Brand |
| 2024 | Fem van Empel |
| 2023 | Fem van Empel |
| 2022 | Fem van Empel |
| 2021 |  Clara Honsinger |
| 2020 | Annemarie Worst |
| 2019 | Yara Kastelijn |
| 2018 |  Kim Van De Steene |
| 2017 |  Helen Wyman |
| 2016 | Jolien Verschueren |
