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2026 GP Sven Nys Cyclocross (C-1)
Baal, Belgium

Thursday, January 1, 2026

GP Sven Nys Cyclocross podium history | 2025 edition | Course map

Complete results: Men | Women

Weather at the race city of Baal at 2:40 PM, local time: 4C (40F), cloudy, with the wind from the west-southwest at 23 km/hr (14 mph). There is a 7% chance of rain.

Men:

Mathieu van der Poel starts the new year with a win.

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The race: Here's a machine-translation of the race organizer's report.

World champion Mathieu Van der Poel won the Sven Nys Grand Prix. Emiel Verstrynge put up a strong fight for a long time, but ultimately had to bow to an undefeated Van der Poel. Verstrynge secured second place, while local hero Thibau Nys won the battle for third place in the background.

Home rider Thibau Nys took the hole shot in Baal. The lead was quickly taken over by season revelation and fast starter Wout Janssen. The world champion initially let them go, but due to the changed course conditions, the big names quickly moved to the front. Rain in the afternoon had finally provided some mud.

On the second climb of the Balenberg, Van der Poel made his first attack and impressed. Among others, Toon Aerts and Cameron Mason immediately had to drop back. Emiel Verstrynge was the only one who could respond to this strong acceleration. He impressively closed the gap to the world champion and turned it into a two-way battle with Van der Poel, who fell on a muddy section but quickly rejoined the lead.

Behind the leading duo, a chasing group formed with Belgian champion Thibau Nys, Jente Michels, X²O Badkamers Trofee leader Joris Nieuwenhuis and European champion Toon Aerts. Verstrynge and Van der Poel engaged in a fierce duel, but in the second half of the race, a strong Verstrynge could no longer respond to the world champion's attacks. Van der Poel triumphed once again, this time ahead of Verstrynge. Thibau Nys managed to break away from his competitors and took third place on the podium in his hometown. Joris Nieuwenhuis limited the damage today in the X²O Badkamers Trophy and seems to be a strong contender for the overall victory in the standings, with the Krawatencross and the Brussels Universities Cyclocross still on the schedule.

Even winner Van der Poel was impressed by Verstrynge's performance. “He had a good day. He kept up for a long time, which was impressive. Not much was said, and that wasn't necessary either. I know him quite well. He's a nice guy with a lot of talent. That was evident today.”

Complete results:

Women:

Lucinda Brand wins the first race of the 2026 season

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The race: Here's a machine-translation of the race organizer's report.

Lucinda Brand won the first women's cyclocross race of 2026. On a challenging but dry course in Baal, she proved clearly stronger than Puck Pieterse and Zoë Backstedt. Pieterse didn't give up easily but was never able to truly threaten Brand for the victory in the GP Sven Nys.

Swiss rider Jolanda Neff took the lead at the start in Baal. The world-famous mountain biker briefly led the race on New Year's Day, but Lucinda Brand quickly took over. Pieterse stumbled on the stairs during the first lap and was therefore unable to immediately respond to Brand's first attack.

While Pieterse began her comeback, Brand built a nice and reassuring lead. Pieterse did everything she could to close the gap and compete for the victory, but Brand remained flawless. Zoë Backstedt rode steadily in third place. Marion Norbert Riberolle, Jolanda Neff, Manon Bakker, and Puck Langenbarg formed a chasing quartet and competed for the remaining podium places.

In the final laps, Pieterse closed the gap somewhat on the unleashed Brand, but it was too late to truly threaten her for the victory on the slopes of the Balenberg. Thus, Lucinda Brand won the Grand Prix of her team manager and strengthened her leading position in the X²O Badkamers Trofee. Puck Pieterse and Zoë Backstedt saw their form improve and took second and third place respectively on the podium.

Brand didn't have an easy time of it, but she had everything under control. "It's always tough here, so that's quite a challenge. Maybe the competition needed to step up more. Puck came on strong towards the end. I rode at a pace I could maintain."

Complete results:

Course map: