European Champion Michael Vanthourenhout third at World Championships: "A podium is always a nice bonus"

Mathieu van der Poel was untouchable at the cyclocross World Championships in Tábor and so the others were demoted to just a fight for second place. Michael Vanthourenhout still eventually the best finisher for Belgium as he completed the podium.

"A podium at World Championships is always a bonus," he tells WielerFlits with satisfaction in his voice. "Due to my bad start, this was the highest possible. My first goal was to get a good start at the beginning, but that completely failed because Lars shot out of his pedal."

"But hey, that can happen. I immediately turned the switch to ride forward as quickly as possible. Overall, I had a good day, so maybe I could have competed for second place. But second or third in a World Championship doesn't make much difference either. Being on podum is nice."

Vanthourenhout had high peaks and deep valleys this winter, but he almost always performs well at championships. Today was no different. "I think we have all been very good in recent weeks. I hope to get some nice results in the coming weeks. It was a season with many ups and downs. I have also had a lot of illness, but I am happy that things are going well again and that I can have a good end to it."