Gerben de Knegt (Rabobank) and Marianne Vos (Nederland Bloeit) – both silver medallists in the Dutch National Championships last weekend – both put their disappointment behind them to win the Centrumcross at Surhuisterveen, Netherlands ahead of Sunday’s World Cup round in Roubaix, France.
De Knegt escaped on the first lap and managed to hold on to finish solo despite a late surge from Rob Peeters (Landbouwkrediet) in the final laps. Thijs Van Amerongen (AA Drink) was third, De Knegt’s teammate Bart Aernouts was fourth and the United States’ Jonathan Page (Planet Bike) was fifth.
Neither of this season’s top three riders – Sven Nys, Niels Albert and Zdenek Stybar – was at the race.
"I see it as a boost after my second place at the Dutch championship on Sunday in Heerlen,” said De Knegt on wielermagazine.com. “I was fed up foe a while but Lars Boom was simply stronger. I’m looking forward to the World Championships in Tabor again.
“I bumped my knee in Sint Niklaas a week before the national championships and didn’t have my top form. Bit by bit it comes back though and I hope next weekend at the World Cup in Roubaix I can take a top-5 ranking. This is a victory in any case. There is always a certain amount of looking down on the smaller international cross races in the Netherlands, but it is not easy to win them. Anyone who normally finishes behind Stybar, Nys and Albert, will seize this opportunity to try to win. To me it is a success, a boost.''
Vos took the women’s race in similar fashion after taking the lead early on and steadily increasing her lead over the rest of the field. Newly re-crowned German champion Hanka Kupfernagel was second with Sanne Van Paassen (ZZPR.nl) third. Great Britain’s Nikki Harris was fourth.
Dutch champion Daphny Van Den Brand (ZZPR.nl) crashed early on and later abandoned due to exercise-induced asthma.