Niels Albert Wins Cyclocross World Cup at Hoogerheide, Pauwels Second – UPDATED: Photo Gallery, Report, Full Results

James Driscoll tries in vain to get the mud off. © Bart Hazen

HOOGERHEIDE, NETHERLANDS – It was an exciting battle today at the final World Cup race in Hoogerheide, where Niels Albert (BKCP-Powerplus) and Kevin Pauwels (Telenet-Fidea) traded podium spots from last weekend’s World Cup Pont-Chateau. Zdenek Stybar (Telenet-Fidea), perhaps seeking to quiet those critical of him missing Pont-Chateau, launched off the front on the first lap, creating a gap that would take his chasers six laps to bridge.

Swiss rider Christian Heule (Champion System LBS) was the first to go off the front of the race, but it wasn’t long before Stybar showed his hand and took control. By the end of the first lap, he’d build a lead of almost 20 seconds, and he’d hold that gap for the first half of the race despite a rotation of chasers in pursuit.

Tim Johnson (Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com) decided to show that his rubbing shoulders with the world’s best last weekend was no fluke, and led the chase for the first lap, giving the Green Machine some international exposure. Johnson would eventually finished in 16th, with Jonathan Page (Planet Bike) coming in a few places behind, in 20th.  But it was the efforts of a driving Kevin Pauwels and determined Niels Albert that ultimately whittled the chasers down to five Europeans – Sven Nys (Landbouwkrediet) and Klaas Vantornout (Sunweb-Revor) rounding out the group – and brought the riders within striking distance of Stybar.

By the end of lap number five, Stybar’s lead had shrunk to eight seconds over Albert, Pauwels and Vantornout, and the reigning world champ looked to be running out of gas.

“The legs were a bit empty,” Stybar said on his website. “Because of that, I made one mistake after the other.” It was one such miscue – a bobble by the Czech star – that ultimately closed the gap, and a botched bike exchange would then put him a few seconds behind the new leaders, Albert and Pauwels. The lead group of five stayed together for a short period, during which time Nys had a number of small setbacks that kept him chasing, before Albert played his card and drove off the front, with Pauwels the only rider able to follow.

“It would have been fantastic to go off to St. Wendel with some extra confidence,” Stybar told Belgian radio station Sporza. “But I’m going to enjoy [this experience] too. This could be my last day in the rainbow jersey.”

Stybar, however, is not giving up on his chances for another world title just yet. He’s just wrapped up a long training camp in Mallorca, Spain, to help come back from tendinitis, and feels that he hasn’t fully recovered from that workload yet. “At first I felt like Mallorca was out of my legs, but that feeling changed as the race progressed. I’m really looking forward to the World Championships in Germany and hope to extend my title. That would save my season.”

“It’s a shame, but I’m never good in Hoogerheide,” Stybar continued. “A week later I am though. Hopefully that will be the case again.”

As Albert maintained his lead over Pauwels to take the win, the perpetually calm Nys overtook Stybar and came into third comfortably. Vantornout finished just a second behind a fading Stybar for fifth, with the young Tom Meeusen in sixth. German champion Philipp Walsleben, enjoying a fabulous campaign in just his second season as an Elite, finished in seventh – putting six riders within a minute of Albert’s winning pace. This bodes well for an exciting culmination to the season next weekend for the World Championships.

Like Stybar, Albert, too, has been piling on the training efforts, and didn’t expect such a good performance from his weary body. “It was a very tough week,” said Albert. “Today the legs were very tired but I’m happy with the victory. First I had to close the gap on Stybar, Kevin didn’t want to work because of his teammate. But it was a goal for me to win the race, so I’m very happy.”

“I am very happy with my third place, because the two were slightly better for me,” Nys told Sporza. “The progression compared with last week is great. I think next week at the World Championship I again will have good legs.”

Albert’s effort was more than enough to secure his lead in the overall World Cup standings, with Pauwels coming in second, and – as reflected in today’s finishing order – Nys in third. Bart Aernouts (Rabo-Giant) finished in fourth and Francis Mourey (Francaise de Jeux) in fifth overall, although the duo could only manage ninth and 10th on the day.

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