“I lost a lot of time. But I never gave up" - Fem van Empel bravely battles to 7th on disaster day in Namur

It's not often cyclocross world champion Fem van Empel finishes off the podium but on Sunday afternoon at the World Cup in Namur, that was indeed the case. On a day where seemingly nothing went to plan for the Dutchwoman, Van Empel was eventually forced to settle for a 7th-placed finish.

A victim of at least three crashes caught on camera, Van Empel's quest to build up momentum was consistently halted on a course which is renowned as one of the toughest in the entire cyclocross calendar. "Maybe I was a bit too enthusiastic at the beginning. That cost me a lot of time," reflected Van Empel post-race. “I kept fighting. That’s the good thing about today. I lost a lot of time. But I never gave up, so in the end it was still good.”

In terms of the overall World Cup standings, things are far from disastrous for the Team Visma | Lease a Bike superstar. Van Empel now sits second overall, 11 points behind Lucinda Brand.

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