A new cyclocross race, but once again in Loenhout, Lucinda Brand emerged as the winner. However, compared to previous races, the Baloise Glowi Lions rider was pushed to her limits this time. This was partly due to the course in Loenhout.
Because of the freezing cold and dry weather conditions in recent days, the course was very fast this year. It was therefore not so easy for Brand to break away from the competition. "On this course, it was difficult to make a difference," she began her recount in the flash interview with Sporza after the race. "I also wanted to wait a bit in the first phase of the race."
"In some places, it was very slippery and there were many corners. I couldn't really use my power. At some point, I decided to switch to a tire with a coarser tread. After that, I was able to use my strength better."
Still, Brand had to dig deep into her energy reserves to keep the young Czech Kristýna Zemanová behind her. "It was really tough to build a gap. I definitely didn’t want to wait for a sprint, considering Zemanová’s explosiveness."
"I wanted to make it as difficult as possible for her in the final lap, but in the end, she cracked. It’s also kind of fun to have such an exciting race, but today it was really hard to figure out where you could make a difference," Brand concludes.
X²O Badkamers Trofee Azencross - Loenhout| Rank | Rider | Time |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 48:34 | |
| 2 | + 05 | |
| 3 | + 12 | |
| 4 | + 22 | |
| 5 | + 35 | |
| 6 | + 36 | |
| 7 | + 37 | |
| 8 | " | |
| 9 | + 01:20 | |
| 10 | + 01:21 |
| Rank | Rider | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Lucinda Brand | 03:50:45 | |
| 2 | Manon Bakker | 03:59:59 | |
| 3 | (3) | Julie Brouwers | 04:04:29 |
| 4 | (1) | Inge van der Heijden | 04:05:45 |
| 5 | (1) | Aniek van Alphen | 04:07:54 |
| 6 | (5) | Marion Norbert Riberolle | 04:08:22 |
| 7 | (2) |  Sara Casasola | 04:08:50 |
| 8 | (7) | Annemarie Worst | 04:09:42 |
| 9 | (12) |  Kristýna Zemanová | 04:09:58 |
| 10 | (3) |  Marie Schreiber | 04:10:00 |
