Compton, Boom take World Cup race in the Netherlands
American Katie Compton and Dutchman Lars Boom took top honors in Sunday's muddy UCI cyclocross World Cup in Pijnacker, the Netherlands. For both, it was their first victory in a World Cup event. Compton (Spike Shooter), the reigning U.S. women's cyclocross champion, took the lead from the gun, surrendering it only briefly in a sandy section that was faster to run than to ride. “The course was very hard, really muddy and sandy, so your skills and power had to be on; lose focus for a second and you crash into a barrier or dump it in the mud,” Compton told VeloNews. Compton regained
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Photo: Bodenmueller/Tamarac
American Katie Compton and Dutchman Lars Boom took top honors in Sunday’s muddy UCI cyclocross World Cup in Pijnacker, the Netherlands. For both, it was their first victory in a World Cup event.
Compton (Spike Shooter), the reigning U.S. women’s cyclocross champion, took the lead from the gun, surrendering it only briefly in a sandy section that was faster to run than to ride.
“The course was very hard, really muddy and sandy, so your skills and power had to be on; lose focus for a second and you crash into a barrier or dump it in the mud,” Compton told VeloNews.
Compton regained the lead as the course wound over a stair section followed by a muddy, downhill left turn and then up over a bridge. Behind, Belgian Sanne Cant and Reza Hormes-Ravenstijn of the Netherlands were chasing, with Daphny Van Den Brand of the Netherlands moving up behind them.
Van Den Brand caught and passed the two chasers, and at one point Compton’s lead was down to just a few seconds. But she gapped her the Dutch rider going through the barriers preceding the second pit, and when Van Den Brand went in for a bike change the American stuck with her number-one bike and kept plugging away.
“I kept the pressure on after that second pit and steadily increased my lead each lap,” Compton said.
In the end, she finished nearly a minute ahead of Van Den Brand with Ravenstijn third at 01:03.
Reza had a great race,” said Compton. “She was able to chase Daphny down and close the gap so Daphny had to work hard to mainain her second place.”
Boom, boom
Boom knows what his strengths are. Despite winning the world under-23 time trial championship in Stuttgart in September, the young Dutchman said he planned to focus on his favorite discipline, cyclocross, at the start of his professional career.
Photo: Bodenmueller/Tamarac
The Rabobank rider – also the world’s reigning U23 ‘cross champion – showed he made the right choice Sunday, winning the third round of the men’s World Cup.
Boom beat a top field of contenders, including defending World Cup champion Sven Nys, who finished a disappointing fifth, 45 seconds behind the winner.
Showing he was capable of riding with the best, the 22-year-old Boom attacked early and often in front of a large home crowd in Pijnacker. After two laps, Boom powered away with a group of top riders, including Belgians Nys and Klas Vantornout, along with Frenchman Francis Mourey.
The quartet was eventually joined by Bart Wellens and Czech rider Petr Dlask. Boom attacked hard at the mid-point and saw that no one managed to keep his pace. Wellens eventually bridged up to the Dutchman in the final lap, but was easily beaten in the final charge to the line.
“Lars really pushed the pace today,” Wellens conceded, “and I had heavy legs as we came to the finish. I could not stay with him in the final meters.”
“Winning a World Cup was my primary goal this season, so I am a happy man,” Boom said after his victory. “I put a lot of effort into preparing for the cyclocross season and today it paid off.”
Sunweb’s Jonathan Page was the top American finisher in the men’s race, taking 16th, at 4:26. Americans Jonathan Baker and Christopher Jones (Nerac) finished 36th and 40th respectively, credited with finishing one lap and two laps off of Boom’s time.
The fourth round of the World Cup is slated for November 24 in Koksijde, Belgium.
UCI Cyclocross – World Cup Round 3
Pijnacker, Netherlands
1. Lars Boom (Nl), 1:06:54
2. Bart Wellens (B), at 0:14
3. Klas Vantornout (B), at 0:32
4. Petr Dlask (Cz), at 0:42
5. Sven Nys (B), at 0: 45
6. Erwin Vervecken (B), at 0:50
7. Zdenek Stybar (Cz), at 0:51
8. Gerben De Knegt (Nl), at 1:00
9. Enrico Franzoi (I), at 1:20
10. Richerd Groenendaal (Nl), at 1:43
CompleteMen’s ResultsWomen
1. Katie Compton (USA), Spike Shooter 0:40:04
2. Daphny Van Den Brand (Nl), at 00:54
3. Reza Hormes-Ravenstijn (Nl), at 01:03
4. Birgit Hollmann (G) Team Getränke-Hoffmann, at 01:12
5. Pavla Havlikova (Cz), at 01:35
6 Helen Wyman (GB) Global Racing Team, at 01:44
7. Christelle Ferrier-Bruneau (F), at 02:07
8. Sanne Cant (B), at 02:31
9. Gabriella Day (GB), Global Racing Team, at 02:38
10. Nadia Triquet-Claude (F), at 02:48
CompleteWomen’s Results
