Results Superprestige Jaarmarktcross Niel | Laurens Sweeck takes dramatic victory with last-gasp sprint

The men’s Superprestige Niel served up one of the most unpredictable finishes of the season, as Laurens Sweeck edged out Niels Vandeputte in a dramatic last-gasp sprint.

From the outset, the race promised fireworks. Swiss rider Kevin Kuhn and Czech challenger Michael Jezek were the first to show themselves on the opening lap, but it didn’t take long for Belgium’s leading names to assert control. Sweeck, Michael Vanthourenhout, and Vandeputte moved clear after just two laps, each eager to redeem themselves after underwhelming European Championship results the previous weekend.

Reigning European champion Toon Aerts had a slow start, hovering around 25th before steadily working forward. Emiel Verstrynge’s puncture and Mees Hendrikx’s back pain reshuffled the early chase, leaving Sweeck to dictate proceedings through the sand, with Vanthourenhout looking the smoothest over the tricky technical sectors.

At halfway, Jente Michels bridged across to form a quartet, but fatigue and pace changes soon fractured the front again. Vandeputte was the next to strike — a fierce acceleration on lap seven opening a small but decisive gap. The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider, who hadn’t won since Luxembourg early in the season, looked poised for redemption as he distanced the Crelan pair of Sweeck and Verstrynge.

Yet Sweeck and Vanthourenhout refused to yield. Working smoothly together, the two reeled the young leader back in with two laps to go. Behind, Spain’s Felipe Orts surged into fifth as the race fragmented under the relentless tempo.

The closing laps were pure suspense. Vanthourenhout launched through the sand with power, only for Sweeck to cling on and drag Vandeputte back into contention. Three riders hit the final lap virtually together — and in the dying metres, Sweeck produced a stunning bike-throw sprint to snatch victory by inches from Vandeputte, with Vanthourenhout rounding out the podium.

Aerts capped his European champion debut with a strong top-ten finish, while Sweeck’s late surge sealed his first Superprestige triumph of the campaign — a gritty, hard-won reward for persistence on the technical slopes of Niel.