Fem van Mbel won her third cyclo-cross World Cup title. In the fast course in Tabor, Czech Republic, six more women battled it out in the final round. Van Embel didn’t let it come down to a sprint and took the lead ahead of his teammates Buck Peters and Annemarie Worst. Just 20 years old, Van Embel, who still competes for Belgian Pauwels Sassen-Bingol, has previously won two World Cup crosses in the United States. On January 1, Brabant will be transferred to Jumbo-Wisma.
Van Embel said jet lag had tricked him. “My legs aren’t feeling well and I haven’t slept well the past few days,” he explained in his somewhat defensive way. “All I could do was follow. Then I hit the last slope.”
Peters took the lead by jumping over the beams, and on the final lap there were five riders in his path: the four guys and the Hungarian Kata Blanka Vas. At the last crossing over the beams, Peters tried to drive away. Vorst and van Embel managed to follow, after which the latter took off in the final kilometer to record his third victory. “I never expected this, but the season is still long. It will be time for me to rest.” (ANB)
A version of this article appeared in the October 24, 2022 issue of the newspaper