Things looked so good for Joris Nieuwenhuis for so long at Superprestige Middelkerke on Saturday afternoon. Sadly for Dutch National Champion, a complete collapse saw him drop from dominant leader to distant third behind winner, Eli Iserbyt.
“I just didn't have a very good day, I guess,” reflected the Baloise - Trek Lions man, somewhat dumbfounded in his post-race interview. “After two or three laps I realized that I wasn't going to last until the end this way. But I heard that the times remained somewhat the same, so I held out hope that they also experienced a bit of decline. But I really couldn't get through those last few laps. I couldn't climb those climbs anymore. Then it was really over.”
There surely must be a reason for such a dramatic fall-off though. If so, does Nieuwenhuis have any idea as to why? “This was a good lesson for me," he assesses honestly. "In recent weeks I have moved all the appointments I have at home to after the World Championship."
"I really try to keep the weeks before that empty in my planning," he concludes. "Maybe I have done a little too much in recent weeks and then the energy is simply gone.”
💬 🇳🇱 Joris Nieuwenhuis: "I just didn't have a good day today. The course suits me and I started fast as usual but halfway my energy level had gone. After two/three laps I felt that I couldn't keep it that way and hoped that the others would slow down as well."
