"I am not yet where I want to be" - Anna van der Breggen not satisfied despite an impressive display at Omloop van het Hageland
Cycling
After diabolical Omloop Het Nieuwsblad WE, Team SD Worx - Protime couldn't afford another disaster at the follow up semi-classic - Omloop van het Hageland. And thanks to spectacular performance from the returning Anna van der Breggen, her teammate Femke Gerritse was indeed able to pull it off, and in a sprint of a small group take the biggest victory of her career.
"We wanted to make the race hard and it worked out well. Anna van der Breggen was super strong and did a lot of work. She put us all in a luxury position," Gerritse complimented her teammate.
Van der Breggen was indeed in the center of all action this Sunday. When her first attack at 55 km mark didn't work out, she tried again on the penultimate time up the cobbled Kerkstraat, reducing the front group to just about 30 riders. She then continued to reduce the numbers up front, and eventually there were only seven riders left to fight it out for the victory. With her last strength, she prepared a sprint for her teammate Gerritse who was able to finish off the job.
"I hope I can make some more steps and become better than I am now. In terms of intensity, I am not yet where I want to be. But you only get that part by racing. In training you can plan your intervals very specifically, but in racing it is not so measured. In between, you ride harder and you don't know in advance how many times you have to go, as you do in training," Van der Breggen said in team press release.
"Sometimes you have to go 10 times, sometimes 20. You only get that intensity by racing. That's what this race was perfect for. Every time, the intensity was there. This was a top day for the team and a special win for Femke Gerritse."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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