Search our site:

Sign up for our Email Newsletter

2022 Heusden-Zolder - GP Eric de Vlaeminck Cyclocross (C-1)
Heusden-Zolder, Belgium

Tuesday, December 27, 2022

Heusden-Zolder Podium history | 2021 edition | 2023 edition | Course map

Complete results: Men | Women

Weather at Zolder at 1:15 PM, local time: 7C (44F), mostly cloudy, with the wind from the wouthwest at 18 km/hr (11 mph). There is a 5% chance of rain during the afternoon.

Men

Wout van Aert was the fastest man on the course.

Bill & Carol McGann’s book The Story of the Tour de France, 2022: The Fastest Tour Ever is available as in both Kindle eBook & audiobook versions. To get your copy, just click on the Amazon link on the right.

The race: Here's the race report from winner Wout van Aert's Team Jumbo-Visma.

Wout van Aert has won the Superprestige of Heusden-Zolder. The Belgian champion won a fierce battle with Mathieu van der Poel in the last few metres. The two rode the entire cross in front, which made for an intense duel.

Van Aert had an excellent start. Van der Poel showed how much he wanted to win by accelerating on the first lap. Van Aert jumped on the Dutchman's wheel almost immediately. The two then rode the entire cross in the lead before Van Aert managed to take revenge in the sprint. It meant the third win of the cyclocross season for Van Aert.

"It was nerve-wracking", Van Aert said. "On the first lap of the race, Mathieu took the lead. Then we rode together in front for the rest of the race, but we felt like we couldn't get rid of one another. I meant for it to be a long sprint. Mathieu put me under pressure more than once, but I could stay calm and not make any mistakes today. We've always been racing like this. They are always exciting duels."

Complete results:

26.55 kilometers raced at an average speed of 24.21 km/hr

Women

Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado wins again.

James Witherell's book Bicycle History: A Chronological History of People, Races and Technology is available in both print and Kindle eBook formats. To get your copy just click on the Amazon link on the right.

The race: Here's the report for the race organizer.

Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado took her third win of the season in the Telenet Superprestige on and around the Zolder circuit. The Dutch racer was able to maintain a lead over Inge van der Heijden in the last lap. Lucinda Brand completed the Dutch podium.

The Dutch looked eager at the start and took the initiative during the opening minutes. Her compatriot Denise Betsema also had a good start. She took over the lead of the race moments later, but on the fast Heusden-Zolder course it was not easy to get a lead. Eight women started the second lap wheel to wheel.

After a few position changes in the front, we got a slight separation at the end of that second lap. A mistake by Norbert Riberolle brought down Lucinda Brand. The Dutchwoman came off unscathed, but Alvarado, Betsema and Van der Heijden suddenly had a bonus of a few seconds. Brand did not give up yet. Half a lap later she joined the trio at the front with Silvia Persico in her wake.

The five didn't stay together for long, because moments later Alvarado and Van der Heijden took off after a mistake by Betsema. The Pauwels Sauzen – Bingoal rider tried to make up for the gap with Persico on her wheel, but Alvarado was also not sitting still in the front. She went into the last lap with a three second lead over Van der Heijden. Betsema, Persico and Brand followed twelve seconds behind the leader.

Alvarado got wings and systematically expanded her lead. The first two podium places seemed to be fixed, because Inge van der Heijden also had a comfortable bonus on the chasing trio. Lucinda Brand, however, thought otherwise. The Dutchwoman accelerated and dropped Persico and Betsema. The Baloise Trek Lions rider even tried to threaten Van der Heijden's second place, but eventually ended up on the last step of the podium.

Thanks to her third victory in the Telenet Superprestige this season, Alvarado has made up a large part of her deficit in the standings. Denise Betsema, who finished fifth, remains the leader, a point ahead of Alvarado.

Complete results:

14.75 kilometers raced at an average speed of 19.69 km/hr

2022 Heusden-Zolder Cross map: