"It hurts to return to the field now" - Quinten Hermans admits to lacking race sharpness after cyclocross return

After a near two-month break, Quinten Hermans was back in cyclocross action at Mol. Despite not taking a win on his return, the Belgian was happy with his showing. "It's nice that things are going so well right now, so I'm happy with that."

With the December 23rd cross being his first competitive ride since the disappointment that was the European Championship, Hermans was eager to get back on his bike. On the European Championship, Hermans was reflective. "I had put a lot of energy into preparing for the European championship and was in the shape I had hoped for," he said. "It's a pity that my bad luck happened at the wrong point on the course."

Following his 5th placed finish on his return, "Gosh, that hurt," were Hermans's initial thoughts. “I felt like if I could get through the sand first in the beginning, I could choose my own track,” he explained. "But you quickly notice that things went a few kilometers per hour faster when Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert moved on."

With the cyclocross races coming thick and fast this time of year, Hermans is glad to be straight back in at the business end. Admitting his race sharpness was lacking the Belgian said, "I trained well for three or four weeks, but it hurts to return to the field now. In the end, it's nice that things are going so well right now, so I'm happy with that."