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Van der Haar takes emphatic win in final cyclocross World Cup of the season

Vos wins third consecutive World Cup, Rochette 18th in Hoogerheide

January 22, 2017
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Two Dutch riders, both in the midst of comebacks after long recoveries from injury, won the final cyclocross World Cup races of the season Sunday in Hoogerheide, the Netherlands. In the men’s race Lars van der Haar broke the duopoly of Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel, who had taken all seven of the previous contests. With the World Cyclocross Championships looming next weekend in Bieles, Luxembourg, Marianne Vos looked like the odd-on favourite Sunday after winning her third World Cup in a row.

World champion Thalita de Jong got the fast start in her home race and led early, but crashed on the ice and had to leave the race with a knee injury. Belgian Sanne Cant and Luxembourger Christine Majerus assumed the lead going into Lap 2 of six where Marianne Vos attacked.


Katerina Nash (Czech Republic), Cant, and Lucinda Brand (The Netherlands) pursued Vos up the long staircase and were 6-seconds behind at the line. Vos had to grab a new bike which made a leading foursome with American megachamp Katie Compton and Eva Lechner closing in. Maghalie Rochette was 27th and Ruby West 44th.

Halfway through the race Vos led a group of five over the line. Compton didn’t make the junction because of a slip on the stairs but Lechner was accounted for. The quintet had two chase groups nipping at its heels and soon the leading group grew to ten. A crash in this group created chaos.

Cant emerged unscathed and took the lead, Vos in hot pursuit. By the end of Lap 4 Sophie de Boer (Belgium), Annemarie Worst (The Netherlands), Laura Verdonschot and Brand had joined Vos and Cant.

Vos accelerated and left the others behind, Cant and Brand her closest chasers. This duo received reinforcements but the group was 16-seconds in arrears. On the bell lap Rochette was 18th.

Seven-time world cyclocross champion Vos won handily. Brand pushed into second place, her best World Cup result of the season. The final podium position went to Worst, also her 2016-2017 World Cup pinnacle, making for an all-Dutch podium. Top Canuck Rochette finished 18th, 1:31 back.


De Boer wrapped up the World Cup, her first, last week in Fiuggi, Italy.

After four wins from seven WC races, 2016-2016 World Cup champion Wout van Aert was out with a bad knee but three-race victor from Mathieu van der Poel was back after taking Fiuggi off. Van der Poel immediately seized the lead but had plenty of company after Lap 1. Canadian champion Jeremy Martin was 32nd.


Van der Poel sat back as Michel Wildharder (Switzerland) and Clement Venturi (France) both pulled the bunch on Lap 2. The Dutchman then led up the Lap 3 stairs and pulled Venturi across the line.

A Telenet Fidea Lions duo of van der Haar (The Netherlands) and Tom Meeusen (Belgium) caught them up at the start of Lap 4. Van der Haar then pressed the gas. The chase group grew and Meeusen started to block. With five laps remaining Van der Haar’s gap was 18-seconds. Canadian Michael van den Ham was 38th at this point.

Van der Haar’s lead kept rising. There was no cooperation and no real efforts to bring him back as the chase group ballooned. Jeremy Martin was 43rd. It was clear that van der Poel was using the race as training for Luxembourg; the podium fight was between Belgian trio Meeusen, Tim Merlier and Kevin Pauwels and Dutchman Corne van Kessel.

Van der Haar’s bell lap was a victory lap. Meeusen and van Kessel took the second and third podium spots respectively, making for a Telenet Fidea Lions sweep.

Van den Ham was top Canadian at 39th.


UCI Cyclocross World Cup Hoogerheide Elite Women
1) Marianne Vos (The Netherlands/WM3) 42:48
2) Lucinda Brand (The Netherlands/Team Sunweb) +0:13
3) Annemarie Worst (The Netherlands/Liv) +0:15
18) Maghalie Rochette (Canada) +1:31
30) Mical Dyck (Canada) +2:09
45) Rudy West (Canada) +3:23
49) Cindy Montambault (Canada) +3:37

UCI Cyclocross World Cup Hoogerheide Elite Men
1) Lars van der Haar (The Netherlands/Telenet Fidea Lions) 1:03:32
2) Tom Meeusen (Belgium/Telenet Fidea Lions) +0:44
3) Corne van Kessel (The Netherlands/Telenet Fidea Lions) +0:45
39) Michael van den Ham (Canada) +2:35
43) Jeremy Martin (Canada) +3:03
61) Mark McConnell (Canada) +5:58