Aniek van Alphen after victory in CX Essen - "I hope I was able to show with this that I am worth a World Cup ticket"

Aniek van Alphen has added Exact Cross Essen to her list of achievements. She created a gap in the third lap which she increased to over a minute, and crossed the finish line to secure her second victory of the season.

“I hope I was able to show with this that I am worth a World Cup ticket," van Alphen said in the post-race interview. She is delighted with her second win of the season. “Mentally, this is super nice. It's been going super well all season. That I can win twice, in beautiful crosses in Belgium, gives extra morale."

Although her start wasn't ideal, she was able to overcome it. "In the beginning, it didn't go naturally, to be honest. There was quite a group of us, then it's all about good positioning. I did have the idea that they wanted to get on my wheel, the ones behind me anyway because Alicia was riding in the lead. In the scramble, someone fell, I think. I didn't see it myself,” described the Dutchwoman.

She was in the lead by the third lap but maintaining it was difficult. It was a battle against the likes of Yara Kastelijn, Anna Kay, and Alicia Frank. Despite this, she managed to hold on to the lead until the end. "When I got to the front, I had a gap right away. That was to my advantage, of course. Then it was still five laps, so then you still have to hold on. I knew I had to try to hold on or extend it. Fortunately, I managed to do that," concluded van Alphen.