ANALYSIS: Belgian cyclocross could be in crisis, and it is not Mathieu van der Poel’s fault

Another cyclocross winter is drawing to a close, and yet again it’s been a brilliantly show of predominantly Dutch and Belgian magic throughout. In Flanders, cyclocross races are major events, drawing thousands of passionate spectators and commanding prime-time television coverage. The atmosphere is electric, the fans are among the most dedicated in the world, and the rivalry between Belgium and the Netherlands has long been at the heart of the sport.

But is it much of a rivalry anymore?

The short answer would appear to be no. Whilst the Belgian men have remained competitive, albeit in the shadow of Mathieu van der Poel, on the women’s side, the situation is reaching a crisis point. Belgium’s female riders are being completely outclassed, and the numbers paint a bleak picture. Let’s take a look at what’s going wrong in the Belgium cross season, and how the orange army took over.

When Sanne Cant won the Cyclocross World Championship in 2019, it was a brilliant moment for Belgian women’s cross. Little did they know it would be the last for some time. That victory has now taken on a different meaning, as it was the last time a Belgian woman stood on the podium in the elite women’s category at the World Championships. That was six years ago!

Since Cant’s victory, the Netherlands have dominated women’s cyclocross and their Belgian counterparts haven’t had as much as a sniff of victory. Every single world championship podium since 2019 has been an all-Dutch affair, except for 2022, when Silvia Persico managed to take third place for Italy. Belgium, once a proud competitor in cyclocross, has completely disappeared from the top level of the sport in terms of the women’s elite.

The results from the 2025 World Championships in Liévin provided no relief for Belgian fans. Fem van Empel, Lucinda Brand, and Puck Pieterse took gold, silver, and bronze, continuing the Dutch monopoly on the podium. Meanwhile, Belgian riders were left to fight for minor placings, nowhere near the front.

Belgian cycling authorities have finally started to acknowledge the problem, and there have been growing calls for better development programs and structural support for young female riders. However, at this moment, the Dutch system continues to produce world-class talent at an unmatched rate, while Belgium struggles to keep up.

But the problem lies deeper than just during the race for the rainbow jersey.

The World Championships may be the most high-profile example, but Belgium’s struggles in women’s cyclocross extend far beyond a single event. The UCI cyclocross World Cup, the season-long competition that crowns the most consistent rider across the winter, has been completely dominated by the Netherlands.

The last seven World Cup winners have all been Dutch, reinforcing their supremacy across the sport. In fact, in the history of the competition, Sanne Cant is the only Belgian woman to have won the overall title, having done so three times. In stark contrast, Dutch women have won the title 12 times, proving just how deep their talent pool runs.

Even the podium places have been almost exclusively orange in recent years. Since 2019, only one non-Dutch woman has managed to finish on the end-of-season podium: Katerina Nash, who took third place in 2020. Every other year has seen Dutch riders lock out the top three places, leaving Belgian riders trailing far behind.

If you want to understand why Belgium’s women are struggling at the elite level, the best place to look is the under-23 category. The junior and development results reveal a massive structural issue within Belgian women’s cyclocross, and the numbers are shocking to say the least.

A Belgian woman has never finished in the top three of the Under-23 World Cup standings. In contrast, five of the last seven winners have been Dutch, which plays a huge role in the Netherland’s ability to keep producing incredibly talented riders.

The World Championships under 23 race (which were first held for women in 2016) paint an even bleaker picture. Belgium has never won a single medal in the Under-23 Women’s World Championships, not gold, not silver, not even bronze. There has never been a Belgian woman on the podium in the history of the event!

Compare that to the men’s Under-23 category, and the contrast is staggering. Belgian men have won more gold medals in the Under-23 World Championships than any other country, with 13 titles to their name. Thibau Nys most recently took gold in 2023, which has since translated into elite men’s race bronze, proving that the country still produces world-class male riders.

So, why is there such a massive disparity between Belgium’s men’s and women’s development pathways? The answer likely lies in structural issues within Belgian cycling. While the men’s system continues to churn out top-level talent, the women’s system is failing to develop young riders into world-class competitors.

Belgium’s elite women are struggling not because they are untalented, but there must simply be some imbalances and shortcomings that have left them with less adequate training to their male counterparts. One things for sure, the problem doesn’t begin at the World Championships, it starts at the grassroots level.

While the women’s side of Belgian cyclocross is in crisis, the men’s side remains competitive, but only just.

Belgium’s last elite men’s world title came in 2018, when Wout van Aert won his third consecutive championship. Since then, one rider has completely dominated the sport, and we are of course now talking about Mathieu van der Poel.

Van der Poel has been absolutely unstoppable, and perhaps none more than throughout the 2024/25 cross season. The Dutchman has seven world titles and leaving even elite riders like Van Aert struggling to keep up. In 2023, Van der Poel only edged Van Aert in a sprint finish. But what a difference a couple of years makes as in 2025, the gap had widened to a staggering 45 seconds.

In other words, Belgium’s men’s cyclocross doesn’t have a development problem, it has a Mathieu van der Poel problem. The talent is there, but it has run into a generational rider who is simply on a different level.

That’s not the case for the women. While Belgium’s men are still winning silver and bronze, the women are in a position where they are not even in the conversation anymore.

The numbers make it clear: Belgium’s problems in women’s cyclocross start at the grassroots level. The pipeline of young talent, the junior development structure, and the current strategy simply is not working to close the gap to the Netherlands.

For a country where cyclocross is so important and so popular, this is a crisis. The dominance of the Netherlands isn’t just about talent, it’s about investment, development, and long-term planning. And of course the dual brilliance of Mathieu van der Poel and Fem van Empel only exacerbates the problem further as they continue to leave their rivals in the dust.

Belgian cycling authorities have begun to acknowledge the issue, but fixing it will take time. They need to implement better coaching programs, invest in youth development, and create an improved structured pathway for young female riders to progress through the ranks.

If Belgium fails to act, the gap will only continue to widen. The Netherlands already controls every level of women’s cyclocross, and unless Belgium makes major changes, that won’t change anytime soon.