Puck Pieterse about her friendship with Fem van Empel: "We can also have a nice chat with each other, not too much about the cross itself"

In the race they battle each other with everything they have, but afterwards the belt can easily come off for Fem van Empel and Puck Pieterse. After the Urban Cross in Kortrijk, where Van Empel showed herself to be the best for the eighth time this season, the two went out cycling together for half an hour.

"If the weather is not too bad, it is nice to do a debriefing of the race together. But we can also have a nice chat with each other, not too much about the cross itself," Pieterse says in front of the WielerFlits camera shortly after her ride with the world champion.

The Dutch champion apparently does not find it difficult to switch from competitors to friends. "Of course you don't give presents during the competition. But Fem won fairly, so I'm not pissed off about that. You can be angry with yourself, but it would be crazy if I was angry with her."

Pieterse, who finished third herself, saw a great battle. "It was a fast circuit and a nice cross. It stayed together for a long time, which was nice for the viewers on television. We switched a bit at the lead, for a moment Lucinda had a gap, then Fem. But two laps from the end my chain was off. Then it was over for me, but I was still able to finish the cross well."