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Wynan and Van Aert take the flowers at Flandriencross Hamme

Sanne Cant (Belgium) has been dominant in women's cyclocross of late, but she didn't have it all her own way on Sunday as British champion Helen Wyman (Kona Factory Team) soloed to victory in the Flandriencross Hamme race, round three of the Bpost Bank Trofee series.

Wout van Aert

Sanne Cant (Belgium) has been dominant in women’s cyclocross of late, but she didn’t have it all her own way on Sunday as British champion Helen Wyman (Kona Factory Team) soloed to victory in the Flandriencross Hamme race, round three of the Bpost Bank Trofee series. In the men’s race Wout Van Aert (Belgium/(Vastgoedservice-Golden Palace)) took revenge for getting outsprinted by Sven Nys at the Koksijde World Cup.

Wyman was toughest in the mud to take her first victory of the season. The main chase consisted of Cant (Enertherm-BKCP) and Wyman’s compatriot Nikki Harris (Telenet-Fidea). On the second to last lap Cant pulled Wyman back on a section they both had to run, but a mechanical soon after meant that Cant had to catch Harris back up on the bell lap. Cant could not quite close the gap but finished runner-up only 8-seconds behind. Harris made it a very British podium.

In the men’s race Dutchman Lars van der Haar (Giant-Alpecin) got the hole shot while Nys crashed after the start. Van Aert promptly took the lead on the first lap with van der Haar and Belgians Kevin Pauwels (Sunweb-Napoleon Games) and Tim Merlier (Vastgoedservice-Golden Palace) hunting him down.

Another Dutchman, World Champion Mathieu van der Poel, who came back from a long injury layoff to place third in Koksijde, clawed his way up the pack to join van der Haar as the main pursuers. But it was Nys (Crelan-AA Drink) who made an even stronger move up the order to become Van Aert’s greatest threat.

But Van Aert wouldn’t be caught and took his 10th victory of the season. Nys warded off Pauwels for second place.

Canadian Michael van der Ham finished just ahead of countryman Mark McConnell, the Red Truck-Garneau rider 34th and the Hot Sauce Cycling Team man 35th. The order was reversed last week at Koksijde.

The next round of the Bpost Bank Trofee series will be December 5 in Essen, Belgium.

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