Last Belgian cyclocross championship ends sourly for Laura Verdonschot

The hope for a first Belgian title had already faded, but on Saturday in an icy Beringen, Laura Verdonschot still hoped to shine once more in front of her home crowd. The rider from De Ceuster Bouwpunt—who, due to persistent injury struggles, is in her final weeks as a cyclocrosser—however, did not feature in the race.

Verdonschot soon fell to the back of the field and even decided to brake in the third lap. For the 29-year-old cyclocrosser, her final Belgian Championship ended on a sour note. "We had hoped for a good day for Laura, but it’s very up and down. The cold doesn’t seem good for those femoral arteries. This is absolutely not easy for her," explained team director Tom de Kort after the race in an interview with Sporza.

The Limburg rider is in her final weeks as a professional cyclocrosser. Persistent injury issues force her to stop after the winter. It all relates to a major surgery Verdonschot underwent last year. The cyclocrosser had to suddenly halt her race plans after the Belgian cyclocross championships in Zolder (on January 11), due to clogged pelvic arteries.

Verdonschot still finished second in that key national championship, but with weakened legs. A four-and-a-half-hour surgery was necessary. Verdonschot returned to cyclocross after a tough rehabilitation, but she continued to struggle with the aftereffects of her injury and could not reach her desired level.

Deliberate choice
“It is also a deliberate choice that I made, and I still fully stand behind it. I also feel what I feel. My level isn’t what it used to be. Without surgery, it won’t get back to the same level either. I’d rather choose the future,” she said at the end of December in an interview on WielerFlits. “At one point, I started to get everything in order: do I still want this? Am I going to keep putting myself through this?”

“Mentally, it’s also not easy at times to not even be in the top 25, when you’re used to racing at the front. That was harder than the consideration to try one more year and exploit both the team and myself. […] Look, I just have to make peace with it. I realize well that there is another life beyond elite sports, but it is a chapter I need to close, and that’s tough.”