"I've been struggling but I wanted one more win this winter" - Michael Vanthourenhout passes the exam in Brussels Universities Cyclocross
Cyclocross
What a nice way to wrap up this winter for Michael Vanthourenhout who was able to raise his hands one more time at the final round of the X2O Badkamers Trophee. Against strong Joris Nieuwenhuis, the Belgian played his cards perfectly to secure his fifth seasonal victory in Brussels Universities Cyclocross.
"I felt that Joris was just a little bit better," Vanthourenout admitted afterwards. Aware of his own weakness, the Belgian tried to play his cards in the best way possible and let his Dutch opponent dictate the pace while saving his own strength for a final push.
"I let him do the work every now and then so that I could make a move at the end," he explains. "Everything had to happen in the last lap, because we couldn't get rid of each other. I'm glad that I came out on top."
The last weeks were not ideal for Vanthourenhout was unable to make ends meet after his second place in Hulst World Cup at the end of January. This victory therefore comes as a pleasant bonus at the end of the season. "I've been struggling a bit since the World Championship, but I told my entourage that I wanted one more win: Brussels. It's great that that worked out."
Read also
Results of the Brussels Universities Cyclocross:
| Position | Rider | Time |
| 01 | Vanthourenhout Michael | 01:01:44 |
| 02 | Nieuwenhuis Joris | + 08 |
| 03 | van der Haar Lars | + 41 |
| 04 | Iserbyt Eli | + 01:07 |
| 05 | Vandeputte Niels | + 01:10 |
| 06 | Orts Lloret Felipe | + 01:35 |
| 07 | Aerts Toon | + 02:03 |
| 08 | Michels Jente | + 02:05 |
| 09 | Mason Cameron | + 02:09 |
| 10 | Ferdinande Anton | + 02:36 |
Final standings of the X2O Badkamers Trophee 2024/25:
| Position | Rider | Total time |
| 1 | Iserbyt Eli | 8:07:46 |
| 2 | Aerts Toon | 3:38 |
| 3 | Ronhaar Pim | 8:13 |
| 4 | van der Haar Lars | 9:02 |
| 5 | Vandeputte Niels | 11:02 |
| 6 | Vanthourenhout Michael | 11:12 |
| 7 | Sweeck Laurens | 12:34 |
| 8 | Vandebosch Toon | 13:06 |
| 9 | Michels Jente | 18:46 |
| 10 | Adams Jens | 19:48 |
Just in
Play for FREE! Fantasy Tour of Flanders
Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter today!
Popular news
Latest comments
- You are completely wrongvappaxbipmv05-04-2025
- Tadej has a little more chance. It will be an exciting race and the most important thing is that no one gets hurt.
maria2024202405-04-2025 - Whatever happens tomorrow... it'll be a hell of a raceslappers6605-04-2025
- Exactly Tadej, the cancer of modern society. Full of good-for-nothing people who gain visibility and importance on social media mocking, humiliating (and worse things) to earn money. But it's the follower's fault, no followers, no "influencers".maria2024202405-04-2025
- Great commentCaralladas05-04-2025
- i’m such a sucker for those group-hug, happy ending moments between competitors, largely because it’s so WASN’T that way in my younger, stronger days. (on that note, i have this hope that somewhere down the road, maybe fifteen or twenty years, a middle aged wout and mathieu will go for a pleasure ride together in flanders, and reminisce about the days when they were the young, strong monsters that stalked the cobbles.)OCexile05-04-2025
- Just like Dwars door Vlaanderen, the Ronde van Vlaanderen was/is NOT on MAX. Get your facts straight.Ben04-04-2025
- You might bounce more for the same power, but not the same speed. Sending 20 kgs over a jump at 20 kph will fly just as far as 10 kgs at the same speed. Again, Galileo demonstrated this.acem8204-04-2025
- So, you're saying that doing a bunch of small hops on a bike is easier if you're heavier? Why do people buy lighter bikes, then? Why do they generally feel better and faster? An appeal to "rhythm" is not helpful either, as the right "rhythm" might be on the lighter or heavier side of things, and as it varies, it's likely a wash either way. Then we are left with the physics truth that it takes less power to lift lighter things than heavier things.acem8204-04-2025
- No, weight doesn't affect the ability to go into the wind at all. It's all CdA vs power at that point. For example, it's "obvious" that a heavier object falls faster than a lighter one. But, absent wind resistance, it's not true (Galileo demonstrated this). An appeal to "obviousness" doesn't matter when the physics is clear. And yes, you have to be able to hold everything else constant, or you can't determine anything! So, imagine a 300 watt rider at 80 kgs with a CdA of 2.0, then imagine that same rider at 70 kgs with a CdA of 2.0. (Assume ideal tire pressure for both, same bike.) Which one can ride over a bumpy road fastest? The lighter one, as he doesn't have to lift as much. That's also why when they test bikes on 5 star cobbled sectors, the MTB goes faster than even a cobble-build road bike. Even though rolling resistance is higher on a flat road, and the CdA is junk, it smooths out the cobbles, allowing the person to not lift as much as they otherwise would.acem8204-04-2025