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Cant and van der Poel prevail in Waterloo, Wisconsin cyclocross World Cup

Canada's Christel Ferrier Bruneau 9th after placing 17th in Jingle Cross

World Champion Sanne Cant (Belgium) earned her first victory of the 2017-2018 UCI cyclocross World Cup season Sunday in Waterloo, Wisconsin’s hot, dry, dusty conditions. She gauged her efforts perfectly to claim her seventh career World Cup, taking the series lead from Jinglecross winner Katerina Nash after two races. For the second Sunday running, Mathieu van der Poel ran away with the men’s race.


The Women
The runner-up in Iowa, American Katie Keough (Cylance), along with compatriot Ellen Noble (Aspire Racing), took the early lead on Lap 1 of five but Belgian Ellen Van Loy (Telenet Fidea Lions) led at the end of the 2.8-km circuit. Van Loy’s time was 8:35 for the first lap. Last season’s World Cup winner Sophie De Boer and Cant sat fourth and fifth respectively.

Lap 2 saw Van Loy push her gap open farther, while three Americans–Keough, Noble and Katie Compton–formed the closest chase group. Van Loy was one of many crashers in the first couple of laps. Canadian Maghalie Rochette was 9th at that point.


Van Loy’s crash messed up her bike and a group with Keough, Noble, Compton, Cant, De Boer and Italian Eva Lechner caught her. Last week’s winner Katerina Nash had to change her bike and chased back onto the leading group alongside France’s Caroline Mani.

Cant seized the lead on Lap 3. Crashes were creating gaps among the riders in the front group. In the early part of Lap 4 Cant’s lead over six chasers was 12-seconds.

The 17-seconds Cant held at the beginning of the bell lap meant that the real race was about the podium. Keough and de Boer pulled away from the others and then the American detached the Dutchwoman. Cant was conservative in the difficult conditions to ensure the triumph. Cant took two World Cups in ’14-’15, three in ’15-’16 and one last season.

Keough was second for the second consecutive week, while Ellen Noble beat de Boer for the final step.

For the second week in a row the top Canadian was Christel Ferrier Bruneau of SAS-Macogep.

The Men
Just like at Jingle Cross, van der Poel took the hole shot, with several riders stacking up in the first corner. Immediately, the Dutchman pried open a 10-second gap. Corne van Kessel and Lars van der Haar lead the chase pack. World champion and reigning World Cup titlist Wout Van Aert was having mechanical problems similar to those in Jingle Cross.


Van der Poel crossed the finish line for the first time with a 12-second gap, having rolled Lap 1 of 9 in 7:19. A large group vied for second and third. After Lap 3 the gap was over 30-seconds. Tim Merlier (Belgium/Crelan-Charles) had his nose in for a podium spot but last week’s runner-up Iowa and recent CrossVegas winner Laurens Sweeck (Belgium/ERA-Circus) was having a mechanical nightmare; even his shoes were misbehaving.


By the end of Lap 4 van der Poel was 39-seconds ahead of four riders: Merlier, Daan Soete, van Kessel and Michael Vanthorenhout. This quartet stayed together for a few laps, with van Aert drawing a little closer behind.

Van der Poel took his first bike change just before the bell lap. The chase foursome were 53-seconds back going into the final circuit. There were several surges among the chasers in the opening kilometre but the quartet didn’t fragment, even with with Telenet Fidea Lions one-two punching. Finally, Lions Van Kessel and Soete distanced the others to claim the podium. Van Aert will take some consolation in being seventh after his 14th at Jingle Cross.

Top Canadian Michael van den Ham matched his 29th from Iowa.

The next World Cup is October 22 in Koksijde, Belgium.

2017-2018 UCI cyclocross World Cup #2 Waterloo, Wisconsin Elite Women
1) Sanne Cant (Belgium/Beobank-Corendon) 43:13
2) Katie Keough (USA/Cylance) +0:10
3) Ellen Noble (USA/Aspire Racing) +0:16
9) Christel Ferrier Bruneau (Canada/SAS-Macogep) +0:49

2017-2018 UCI cyclocross World Cup #2 Waterloo, Wisconsin Elite Men

1) Mathieu van der Poel (The Netherlands/Beobank-Corendon) 1:06:59
2) Corne van Kessel (The Netherlands/Telenet Fidea Lions) +0:32
3) Daan Soete (Belgium/Telenet Fidea Lions) s.t.
29) Michael van den Ham (Canada/Garneau-Easton) +3:57