Fem van Empel (Specialized TMRW) finished eighth at the Koppenbergcross on Sunday, a year after abandoning the same race less than two minutes in. Afterwards she said she would explain her difficult year at the end of 2026.
“It does me a lot of good to be here again. It has not been an easy year for me,” she told In de Leiderstrui. “At the end of the year I will tell my real story to give more explanation. Above all, I am proud to be here and to ride for a new team. Nothing is obligatory.”
The 2025 abandonment was her last race before she announced an indefinite career pause from January 1, saying the motivation and enjoyment were missing. She signed for FDJ United-Suez on September 17 and races cyclocross as Specialized TMRW.
The former world champion started from the back row for the race but she flew through the group and made it to sixth at around the halfway point, just 51 seconds behind the lead. She eventually finished in eighth almost three minutes behind current world champion Lucinda Brand. It was her third race of the winter, after fourth in Meulebeke and fifth in Heerde.
Lars Boom, the team director coaching her, said before the race that winning was not the aim. “No, just to ride a steady race and to see whether there are further areas of improvement compared with the week before. That is the goal every week,” he said.
The European Championships in Zeddam on Saturday, November 7, is her next race. “With the way we are organising the season, I don't think it is realistic for me to go to the European Championships in peak form,” she said.
Van Empel's three consecutive world titles make her a potential major rival to Brand as her comeback progresses, but their current results point to different stages of preparation. Brand took her fourth victory of the winter at the Koppenberg, attacking around halfway and finishing almost a minute clear. For now, the world champion is setting the standard Van Empel is working towards.
