"What people say about me doesn't really matter to me" - Fem van Empel cannot be bothered by petty critique of her cyclocross performances
Cyclocross
Fem van Empel is having a more than solid cyclocross winter, yet despite her European title and World Cup victories, some still feel that she's less dominant than last winter. The Visma | Lease a Bike rider, however, isn't bothered by the critics and calmly continues her preparation towards World Championships in Liévin.
"And yet I can be very satisfied with my winter for the time being. I won all the races I had set my mind on," she refers to the European Championship, the Koppenbergcross and the World Cups in Antwerp, Gavere and Besançon. "For the rest I have only failed to finish on the podium once: in Namur. I was very unlucky then. If you disregard that race, I have had a very good season so far," Van Empel explains to Sporza.
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And yet, there is some criticism here and there about Van Empel's cross winter. "What people say about me doesn't really matter to me. People don't know what I do and don't do for it. But a judgement is quickly made. But hey, I cross for myself and not for someone else."
Criticism arose, for example, when Van Empel took all the time in the world to straighten her handlebars after a fall in Baal. Instead, she could have continued to the nearby material post. "I knew I was in good shape and wanted to straighten my handlebars calmly," Van Empel defends that action. "In the end, I closed a gap of 30 seconds and won after an exciting final lap. Great!"
With 4 more appointments in her cross agenda, Van Empel is approaching the highlight of the cross season: the World Championships in Liévin. "It's a very nice course, one that should suit me. Whether it's dry or wet, it will be a spectacular cross anyway." After that, a short break should follow and then finally her first start on road of 2025: Milano-Sanremo. "I will ride Milano-Sanremo in a domestique role (for Marianne Vos)," she calms any excitement though. It's at Belgian classics where we can expect to see Vam Empel at the top...
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- The UCI do have their favorites.
Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- People see what they want to. I am actually the opposite of your accusation, probably more of a rebel than most of you who don’t get the big picture. The difference is, I don’t go moaning publicly about the consequences of my transgressions, I understand the need for rules and I take my OWN responsibility when deciding to ignore or break them or doing so involuntarily. I will also not hesitate to state my case or argue vehemently when relevant, sometimes it works, sometimes it makes things worse but that’s the price to pay for principles and having character.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- That may be but that was unknown to others and nothing says that’s the whole truth. Again, don’t try to misinterpret, it is a call and technically it is correct. Besides, even if there is a valid reason, that does not disqualify the ruling or punishment as far as the rules have been developed. I don’t think they’re as far as in football where for handball there is a distinction (in some ways and specific cases) between intentional or not. And football can be just as harsh and people live with it, eg the offside rule, also judged to within tiny fractions but often wrong or ignored. It’s the nature of every collective organisation and sometimes I wonder if our rebellion against it isn’t seated in the feelings we carry from the injustices we’ve felt personally, like being flashed driving 1km/h too fast when we are explained limits are just a security measure but we are absolutely certain not to have endangered anyone with our transgression. The problem is, nobody has better solutions and no 2 people have the same interpretation of where a limit should be.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Because for you deviated implies the other rider MUST have been made to fall and fail to finish ??? I don’t know if you ride a bike but next time someone carves you up or drives dangerously close, just hold back from those feelings of changing something, reporting or filming or even complaining. Everyone will just say, hey you’re still here undamaged, doesn’t seem like anyone did anything.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- And we, what are we doing?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- And yet, it attracts people, even you. What’s more, it attracts the rival fanboys to fill cyberspace with endless pointless my hero is better than your hero blabla that’s all been heard before and only helps sell the site as an advertising platform. You know what the solution is but most can’t resist. No different than women who follow and discuss celebs through gossip magazines.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- he is doing 460 watts for 35 min to achieve 7 w/kg with VO2 at 96 , just unreal numbers.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just do it, and put up with the consequencesJumpyjohn08-11-2026
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