Cyclingflash
Marie Schreiber wins Exact Cross Maldegem after thrilling final lap, Inge van der Heijden second

Marie Schreiber wins Exact Cross Maldegem after thrilling final lap, Inge van der Heijden second

Marie Schreiber has won the Exact Cross Maldegem again this year, just as she did last year. After an exciting final lap, she outpaced Inge van der Heijden, Amandine Fouquenet, and Leonie Bentveld.

The Parkcross in Maldegem has long provided cyclocross riders the chance to make a comeback after a disappointing World Championship. Or to ride the wave of euphoria from a top performance, of course. Leonie Bentveld, who became U23 World Champion last weekend, was hoping for such a scenario. She faced competition from Amandine Fouquenet, Marie Schreiber, Inge van der Heijden, and Belgian champion Marion Norbert Riberolle, among others.

Four-rider breakaway
Norbert Riberolle had a poor start, unlike Bentveld, Fouquenet, and Schreiber. They were the first to dive into the course and immediately opened up a nice gap. In the second of eight laps, European champion Van der Heijden bridged up, and Lauren Molengraaf also stayed close, but the rest of the field would not contend for the podium places. Norbert Riberolle suffered mechanical issues and fell far behind.

The four stayed together for a long time, but at the end of the fourth lap, some action developed. Fouquenet pushed hard, causing Schreiber some trouble. However, Fouquenet herself soon ran out of breath. She had to let Bentveld and Van der Heijden go for a moment but managed to catch back up. Schreiber also rejoined the group. Thus, we started the penultimate lap with four riders.

Exciting final lap
One lap later, that situation was still unchanged. When the bell rang, Bentveld, Fouquenet, Schreiber, and Van der Heijden were still together. In the sand pit, Fouquenet got stuck, forcing her to lose ground. Schreiber tried to capitalize and opened the throttle. Yet Fouquenet managed to return. Would it come down to a sprint with four?

After the barriers, Schreiber put in another surge, but Bentveld was glued to her wheel. Until the next sand section. The U23 World Champion flipped over and had to give up hope of victory.