Iserbyt and Alvarado won the World Cup in Troyes. Boros sprinted for a place in the elite ten

Cyclocrossers and cyclocrossers took to the start of the fourth race of this year’s World Cup on Sunday. Belgian Iserbyt and Dutch Alvarado dominated the main categories in Troyes, France. Michael Boros narrowly missed out on a top ten finish in the final sprint.

The circuit in Troyes was a question mark for many riders before the start. This is the first time the track has appeared on the World Cup cyclo-cross calendar. In the past, only lower category races were held here, which were always overwhelmingly dominated by local riders.

Belgian Eli Iserbyt was the fastest to tackle the unfamiliar circuit, which is characterised by a number of technical passages. At the finish line, he took the victory by 10 seconds over the Dutchman Lars van der Haar. Dutch cyclo-crosser Joris Nieuwenhuis came in third place by one minute and 29 seconds.

Puck Pieterse returned to the start of the women’s elite event in France after a month’s break from racing. In the absence of Fem Van Empel, the current season’s reigning champion, the twenty-one-year-old Dutch champion was one of the race’s biggest favourites.

In the end, she was matched only by her compatriot Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, who beat her by 21 seconds to increase her overall lead in the World Cup standings. The third place in the last round was taken by another Dutchwoman Lucinda Brand, 44 seconds behind the winner.

Sprint for the elite ten

There was only one Czech representative in the men’s elite race. Michael Boros attacked for a place in the elite ten in the last laps, but in the end he narrowly missed out after a final sprint with Swiss Timon Rüegg. Nevertheless, 11th place is the best result so far for the reigning Czech champion in this year’s World Cup.

Czech cyclo-crosser Kristýna Zemanová, who took a lifetime 6th place in the last race in Dendermonde, dropped to the bottom of the second ten after a collision early in the race and had to work her way back to the front in the following laps. She then finished in 13th position.

The other two Czech racers Barbora Jeřábková and Kateřina Hladíková finished in the top ten, finishing 34th and 40th respectively. The men’s U23 category also completed the course in Troyes. Matyáš Fiala was the best Czech athlete, finishing 15th.

The Cyclo-cross World Cup series will move to the British Isles next week, where the cyclo-crossers will race in Dublin, Ireland, on Sunday 26 November.

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