Cyclocross World Cup, Race reports -

Lucinda Brand solos to victory in round six of the CX World Cup

Lucinda Brand solos to victory in round six of the CX World Cup

Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) had experience on her side on her way to round six CX World Cup victory in Tábor, Czech Republic. Her young compatriot Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Fenix) sprinted to second after an aggressive race, and Annemarie Worst (777) finished third.

The fast, grassy Tábor course demanded endurance and skill from start to finish, and Pieterse – second two weeks ago – demonstrated her affinity with the terrain from the very first lap, while Brand kept a cool head in what was a busier race than we’ve seen in the past few rounds. 

After a lightning fast start, seven riders formed a lead group, including Brand, Pieterse, Worst, Blanka Vas (SD Worx), Denise Betsema (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Alpecin-Fenix) and Shirin van Anrooij (Baloise Trek Lions).

The group looked pretty evenly matched until the planks where Pieterse fired warning shots as the only rider to bunny hop while everyone else dismounted. The U23 World Cup leader launched her inevitable attack on lap four of six, but was caught by the Betsema-led chase group on the penultimate lap.

After sitting on the back for a lap or two, Brand came to the front of the seven-rider group at the start of the final lap and picked up the pace. This time, she led the way over the planks and Pieterse, though still bunny hopping, was unable to overhaul the world champion who struck out for the finish, winning in Tábor for the second consecutive year.

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