Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Premier Tech) claimed his 51st UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup victory at Hoogerheide, breaking Sven Nys's all-time record on a course honouring his father Adri. A single lap, clocked at 6:15 compared to the field's 6:26, built a gap that eventually stretched to 1:20 over the chasers.
Elite Men Results
Hoogerheide • Jan 25 • 25km
| Pos | Rider | NATNationality | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 | Mathieu VAN DER POEL | NED | 0:58:41 |
| 🥈 | Tibor DEL GROSSO | NED | +1:20 |
| 🥉 | Niels VANDEPUTTE | BEL | +1:20 |
| 4 | Thibau NYS | BEL | +1:20 |
| 5 | Toon AERTS | BEL | +1:21 |
| 6 | Felipe ORTS LLORET | ESP | +1:23 |
| 7 | Joris NIEUWENHUIS | NED | +1:23 |
| 8 | Gerben KUYPERS | BEL | +1:26 |
| 9 | Filippo FONTANA | ITA | +1:27 |
| 10 | Jente MICHELS | BEL | +1:27 |
| 11 | Lars VAN DER HAAR | NED | +1:29 |
| 12 | Anton FERDINANDE | BEL | +1:33 |
| 13 | Kevin KUHN | SUI | +1:35 |
| 14 | Mees HENDRIKX | NED | +1:37 |
| 15 | Gioele BERTOLINI | ITA | +1:42 |
| 16 | Ryan KAMP | NED | +1:55 |
| 17 | Michael BOROŠ | CZE | +2:08 |
| 18 | Pim RONHAAR | NED | +2:22 |
| 19 | Toon VANDEBOSCH | BEL | +2:23 |
| 20 | Loris ROUILLER | SUI | +2:35 |
| 21 | David MENUT | FRA | +2:38 |
| 22 | Danny VAN LIEROP | NED | +2:45 |
| 23 | Rémi LELANDAIS | FRA | +3:18 |
| 24 | Federico CEOLIN | ITA | +3:19 |
| 25 | Nadir COLLEDANI | ITA | +3:20 |
| 26 | Mario JUNQUERA SAN MILLAN | ESP | +3:26 |
| 27 | Bailey GROENENDAAL | DEN | +3:28 |
| 28 | Timothé GABRIEL | FRA | +3:31 |
| 29 | Nathan BOMMENEL | FRA | +4:39 |
| 30 | Matyáš FIALA | CZE | +4:48 |
| 31 | Loïc BETTENDORFF | LUX | +5:13 |
| 32 | Nicolas BARD | SUI | +5:19 |
| 33 | Kevin SUAREZ FERNANDEZ | ESP | +5:26 |
| 34 | Karl-Erik ROSENDAHL | DEN | +5:33 |
| 35 | Tristan VERRIER | FRA | +5:48 |
| 36 | Remon DELNOIJE | NED | +6:00 |
| 37 | Lars SOMMER | SUI | +6:09 |
| 38 | Jules VAN KEMPEN | USA | - |
| 39 | David RISBERG | SWE | - |
| 40 | Cody SCOTT | CAN | - |
| 41 | Cameron JETTE | CAN | - |
| 42 | Jacob TURNER | NZL | - |
| 43 | Nicola PARENTI | ITA | - |
| 44 | Ugo ANANIE | FRA | - |
| 45 | Yuta OKAYAMA | JPN | - |
| 46 | Dries BRUYNSEELS | SVK | - |
Van der Poel's attack came at the end of lap two, with the world champion accelerating through corners at speeds his teammates couldn't match. From that point, he continued alone at the front. The Dutchman sealed the World Cup overall classification with 320 points, 56 clear of Thibau Nys.
"I worked hard in Spain to be in top shape and it seems it works," Van der Poel said. "Hopefully I can have a good and easy week now and go for it next week."
The sprint that Nys lost
The remaining podium places were decided in the final sprint. Thibau Nys led the 15-strong chase group onto the final straight, but he let pressure off before the line. As Tibor Del Grosso surged past on his left, Nys visibly eased, allowing Niels Vandeputte to lunge past on the inside at the line.
"I had the feeling I was the strongest over there, but it's a shame I couldn't finish it off," Nys said. "It's just my own fault. I had to sprint until the line."
Vandeputte's explanation was simple: "I just kept believing because I know it goes uphill in the last 100 meters, and it's easy to lose a few meters once you stop pedaling."
The result gave Alpecin-Premier Tech a second consecutive podium sweep, following their 1-2-3 at Maasmechelen the previous day.
Van der Haar bids farewell
Retiring Lars van der Haar (Baloise Glowi Lions) finished 11th in his final World Cup appearance, chasing back to the lead group on the penultimate lap after earlier losing contact. He won warm applause from the Dutch spectators.
Del Grosso rode with visible back pain for much of the race, repeatedly stretching on the bike, and finished second in the sprint. "When I accelerated out of the final corner, I felt I didn't have my best legs anymore," he admitted.
Next weekend's World Championships in Hulst will see Van der Poel try to win an eighth rainbow jersey to break Erik De Vlaeminck's record.
Cover image, Van der Poel in Hoogerheide in 2025, credit: Alex Whitehead/SWPix.com
