The first World Cup took place in Tabor, Czech Republic.
Mere seconds into the race, a sharp turn caused around a quarter of the riders to crash. Of the affected riders, we saw Eva Lechner (Starcasino CX Team) and Katie Compton. While they didn’t suffer any injuries, paramedics rushed in when they found Sara Casasola (Servetto-Piumate-Beltrami TSA) still laying down minutes after the crash.
The Elite Women are underway for their first race of the #CXWorldCup in 🇨🇿! pic.twitter.com/nhSVMAvj1w
— UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup (@UCIcyclocrossWC) November 29, 2020
Denise Betsema (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) took the lead for the first lap of the race and a select few racers trailed behind.
In the second lap, Betsema lost momentum in an unassuming climb and Ceylin Alvarado (Alpecin-Fenix) took the opportunity to rush in, stealing the first place spot. Betsema eventually regained the spot and the two spent the rest of the lap tussling to lead.
Two U23 champions, Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Fenix) and Kata Blanka Vas (Doltcini-Van Eyck-Proximus Continental Team) began to establish themselves in the leading pack as the third lap rolled in.
Lucinda Brand (Telenet Baloise Lions), a rider who hadn’t done anything too flashy up to this point, launched an attack seemingly out of nowhere. In the heat of the moment, Alvarado caused a minor collision. Thankfully, nobody was hurt. Brand, however, was not caught and used the slip-up to her advantage, creating a noticeable gap between herself and Alvarado.
💪 💪 💪 @lucinda_brand’s attack was 💥!
1 lap to go now and she has a 22 second lead over Alvarado in 2nd. #CXWorldCup pic.twitter.com/FXX1nRFYq6— UCI Cyclocross (@UCI_CX) November 29, 2020
While Alvarado was able to keep up with Brand early on, she struggled later as Brand pushed harder, putting her roadie endurance into play. Toward the end of the lap, Brand was able to build a 10-second lead.
Katie Compton, who lost precious time due to the crash in the beginning, was now starting to work her way back up. She moved up to 30th from 40th.
By the fifth lap, Brand had a 19-second advantage over Alvarado.
A minor crash in the second group caused Betsema to get left behind and Annemarie Worst (777) to gain some slight advantage. Fortunately for her, she was able to get back with the group rather quickly.
In the sixth lap, Vas surprised everyone as she began to lead the second group, consisting of herself, Annemarie Worst (777) and Betsema. At that point, they were fighting for third and Vas was trying her best to get rid of the other two.
As the sixth lap came to a finish, it became clear that Brand would be triumphing in Tabor. The crowd cheered as Brand crossed the finish line and took the first world cup.
🎉 Congratulations @lucinda_brand! 🎉
The winner today in Tabor and our first overall #CXWorldCup leader of the 2020/21 season. pic.twitter.com/nCL8nMkVlb
— UCI Cyclocross (@UCI_CX) November 29, 2020
Alvarado placed second.
The second group showed up to the finish line soon after. Vas’ efforts to ditch the others were short-lived and Betsema outsprinted Vas as the race ended. Worst came in fifth.
As for North Americans, Maghalie Rochette just barely missed the top ten, placing 11th. Katie Compton was left behind due to the crash and placed 31st in the end. Cyclocross Magazine columnist Corey Coogan Cisek placed 48th.
Full results below.
2020-2021 World Cup Tabor Results: Elite Women
| Rank | BIB | Rider | Nation | Age | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | BRAND Lucinda | NED | 31 | 0:53:43 |
| 2 | 1 | ALVARADO Ceylin del Carmen | NED | 22 | 0:54:07 |
| 3 | 7 | BETSEMA Denise | NED | 27 | 0:54:15 |
| 4 | 55 | VAS Kata Blanka | HUN | 19 | 0:54:15 |
| 5 | 2 | WORST Annemarie | NED | 25 | 0:54:33 |
| 6 | 8 | PIETERSE Puck | NED | 18 | 0:55:05 |
| 7 | 12 | VERDONSCHOT Laura | BEL | 24 | 0:55:14 |
| 8 | 42 | ARZUFFI Alice Maria | ITA | 26 | 0:55:14 |
| 9 | 48 | KAY Anna | GBR | 21 | 0:55:28 |
| 10 | 4 | KASTELIJN Yara | NED | 23 | 0:55:36 |
| 11 | 50 | ROCHETTE Maghalie | CAN | 27 | 0:55:38 |
| 12 | 10 | CANT Sanne | BEL | 30 | 0:55:45 |
| 13 | 15 | FRANCK Alicia | BEL | 26 | 0:55:52 |
| 14 | 43 | BARONI Francesca | ITA | 21 | 0:55:54 |
| 15 | 36 | GONZALEZ BLANCO Lucia | ESP | 30 | 0:55:56 |
| 16 | 22 | CLAUZEL Perrine | FRA | 26 | 0:56:23 |
| 17 | 45 | REALINI Gaia | ITA | 19 | 0:56:30 |
| 18 | 9 | DE BOER Sophie | NED | 30 | 0:56:42 |
| 19 | 5 | VAN DER HEIJDEN Inge | NED | 21 | 0:57:00 |
| 20 | 21 | NORBERT RIBEROLLE Marion | FRA | 21 | 0:57:03 |
| 21 | 49 | NELSON Josie | GBR | 18 | 0:57:21 |
| 22 | 17 | TRUYEN Marthe | BEL | 21 | 0:57:39 |
| 23 | 11 | VAN LOY Ellen | BEL | 40 | 0:57:53 |
| 24 | 52 | BARHOUMI Zina | SUI | 24 | 0:57:56 |
| 25 | 13 | VANDERBEKEN Joyce | BEL | 36 | 0:57:56 |
| 26 | 41 | LECHNER Eva | ITA | 35 | 0:58:13 |
| 27 | 24 | MORICHON Anaïs | FRA | 21 | 0:58:16 |
| 28 | 23 | FOUQUENET Amandine | FRA | 19 | 0:58:30 |
| 29 | 32 | ŠTĚPÁNOVÁ Karla | CZE | 29 | 0:58:34 |
| 30 | 35 | TVARŮŽKOVÁ Tereza | CZE | 22 | 0:58:47 |
| 31 | 39 | COMPTON Katherine | USA | 42 | 0:58:54 |
| 32 | 47 | BULLERI Alessia | ITA | 27 | 0:59:19 |
| 33 | 28 | CLAUZEL Hélène | FRA | 22 | 0:59:43 |
| 34 | 31 | VANÍČKOVÁ Tereza | CZE | 20 | 0:59:49 |
| 35 | 16 | VERHOEVEN Suzanne | BEL | 24 | 1:00:07 |
| 36 | 19 | DE WILDE Julie | BEL | 18 | 1:00:17 |
| 37 | 29 | GIRAULT Lyse | FRA | 20 | 1:00:26 |
| 38 | 18 | BROUWERS Julie | BEL | 18 | 1:00:45 |
| 39 | 30 | ŠVIHÁLKOVÁ Tereza | CZE | 21 | 1:00:55 |
| 40 | 51 | PAUL Stefanie | GER | 34 | 1:01:03 |
| 41 | 34 | UNGERMANOVÁ Elizabeth | CZE | 21 | 1:01:13 |
| 42 | 37 | CUETO VEGA Sara | ESP | 26 | 1:02:00 |
| 43 | 53 | RÜEGG Noemi | SUI | 19 | |
| 44 | 27 | DEVIGNE Camille | FRA | 18 | |
| 45 | 33 | MUDŘÍKOVÁ Kateřina | CZE | 24 | |
| 46 | 54 | GEOGHEGAN Michelle | IRL | 38 | |
| 47 | 46 | PERSICO Silvia | ITA | 23 | |
| 48 | 40 | COOGAN CISEK Corey | USA | 43 | |
| 14 | SELS Loes | BEL | 35 | DNF | |
| 6 | VAN ANROOIJ Shirin | NED | 18 | DNF | |
| 44 | CASASOLA Sara | ITA | 21 | DNF | |
| 25 | CURINIER Léa | FRA | 19 | DNS |
