"I was almost on my own for the entire race" - Puck Pieterse takes battling third on tough day in Antwerp

Although perhaps not at her best, a battling display from Puck Pieterse ensured she wouldn't leave Antwerp without a podium place from the latest World Cup round.

“I suffered a lot. From the start I was gapped," she recalled in her post-race interview. “I didn't have the best start, I was in fifth position or so. Cracks soon appeared in the sand. Fem and Lucinda left a gap. When I was in third position I almost got there, but I made a mistake myself. The next lap Ceylin and I almost came back, but Ceylin made a mistake. We were chasing the entire cross.”

At one point, Pieterse did indeed regain contact with the leading duo, although that wouldn't last long. "I knew that Fem or Lucinda would attack immediately when I joined. The pace did indeed pick up, so I was almost on my own for the entire race. It was tough to keep pushing,” she says. “The moment I joined, I was at the limit. But there was so much to gain, so if you can ride certain parts in the wheel, you can recover somewhat. However, when they went quiet, I didn't want Ceylin to come back. I wanted to keep the pressure on."

"Then Fem drove away and I was left with Lucinda. That was okay, but you had to leave a small gap in the sand so you could ride your own line. Only Lucinda had one very good piece, which left her with a gap. That's where the spring broke for me,” Pieterse concludes. “Of course you prefer to be there from the start, because if you could ride the wheel at certain points, you were really well protected from the wind. I constantly saw Fem and Lucinda sitting together in the wheel. That saves a lot of energy.”