Preview. This 15th of October will see the first round of the 2023-2024 Cyclocross World Cup, a critical day in the CX calendar which will see many of the discipline's main stars go head-to-head for important points and the first big win of the season.
The weather has not been too nice for the riders. Usually, the races in the USA are known to be quite fast and lacking a bit the technical aspect when compared to the traditional crosses, however rain has fallen quite a lot on Waterloo this week and that will make things different. Right from the start as the riders enter the fields, there is a thin layer of mud all round, with small ruts forming both in the corners and the straight sections.
A third of the circuit in the riders must dismount in a stairs section and then find some tricky corners. Here differences can be made and it will benefit those with good running form. When around 70% of the track is ridden there is another extremely heavy mud section where more running and a good technique will be key to remain in the front. It will be possible to jump the planks but there will be no rest from the tough trail surface. My outlook on this race is that it will not be one with any real tactics. Following wheels will not really matter, starting too strong won't benefit you greatly, it's an absolute grind from start to finish. It will benefit those with good running form and also seated power, and not so much the explosive riders. Could lead to some surprises no doubt.
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The season began the same way as it ended: a Fem van Empel win. Well deserved, the World Champion definitely comes in with great form into the season and will be a big contender. The truth is that this is only the second big race of the season - and first for many, for both men's and women's races - which makes it hard to analyze much beforehand. The form is rather unknown for a few riders. For victory in the women's race I expect a battle between van Empel and Puck Pieterse who likes the muddy conditions.
Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado rode to second in Beringen last week close to van Empel and should be the prime contender for the podium, I believe her and Shirin van Anrooij will both battle for the podium, and victory is definitely in the cards. For the places that follow we've got figures such as Inge van der Heijden and Manon Bakker from the Dutch side; the North American's have Maghalie Rochete, Clara Honsinger and Raylin Nuss perhaps as their best cards; whilst Zoe Bäckstedt - who finished second to van Anrooij at this Friday's Trek Cup - will also be one to watch and with a decent chance of a Top5.
As for the men's race, I foresee Michael Vanthourenhout and Lars van der Haar to like these conditions. This will be a tough race from start to finish, good for those with a big engine and good mud technique. Niels Vandeputte will also be on my radar, I think he is a rider that will enjoy the mud.
On the opposite end I would likely have Eli Iserbyt. I think both he and Thibau Nys would be the big favourites in normal conditions, but not like this. We'll see how the handle, Iserbyt must perform since he seeks the World Cup and Laurens Sweeck is absent due to a crash last week. Toon Vandebosch, Pim Ronhaar and Joris Nieuwenhuis will be among the outsiders. From the home perspective it is legitimate to have good ambitions, Eric Brunner performed greatly in the World Cups last year. He, Curtis White, Scott Funston and Andrew Strohmeyer will be among those very motivated to show themselves in the international scene.
The women's race will start at 12:40 local time (19:40CET) and is estimated to finish at 13:25 local time (20:20CET). The men's race is set to start at 14:10 local time (21:10CET) and is estimated to finish at around 15:15 local time (22:15).
You can watch the broadcast of the race at the UCI website; GCN+/Eurosport Player internationally. The channels which will broadcast the race will include Telenet PlaySports and Proximus (Belgium), Flobikes (Canada), NOS.nl (Netherlands), Ceská Televize (Czech Republic), TV2 Danmark (Denmark) and TV2 Norge (Norway).
PREDICTIONS:
Women's Elite
*** Fem van Empel
** Puck Pieterse, Shirin van Anrooij
* Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, Zoe Bäckstedt, Manon Bakker
Men's Elite
*** Michael Vanthourenhout
** Lars van der Haar, Eli Iserbyt
* Thibau Nys, Niels Vandeputte, Pim Ronhaar
Preview written by Rúben Silva.
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