"If we leave, not much will change" - Namur World Cup organiser considers leaving the classification
Cyclocross
The cyclo-cross event of the weekend took place on Saturday in Herentals during the round of the X20 trophy: the return to the fields of the five-time world champion in the discipline, Mathieu Van der Poel. Without him and without the other star of the discipline, Wout van Aert, the World Cup in Namur scheduled for the next day could fear the hangover effect. And yet, the public took advantage of the winter sun to come en masse to the Citadel site.
"If I don't count last year's European Championships which took place over three days, this edition is the most successful in terms of the public," the organizer Christophe Impens shares at DirectVelo. "This year, we had 9,100 people on the site. This is better than the previous record of 8,300 in 2021. Every winter, we reach a new milestone." During the first edition, 15 years ago, Niels Albert won in front of… 1200 spectators.
The director of Golazo, which organizes the Namur cyclo-cross, knows the strength of his product. "Here, people come for the place. I live near the Koppenberg, but I am not afraid to say that it is in Namur that the most beautiful course is traced. And like at the Koppenberg, we see that even without Mathieu Van der Poel and Wout van Aert, the spectators are there. We organize a large number of races and Namur is one of those which attract the most people."
The future of Namur cyclocross might be outside the World Cup tho. "We entered this competition in 2011, and today, I ask myself a lot of questions about the need to stay there," explains Christophe Impens. "If we leave, we will always have the same audience, the same infrastructures, and we will certainly have the means to invite Mathieu Van der Poel as we did at Herentals. The big stars no longer follow the logic of regularity rankings."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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