## Zonhoven World Cup Preview: the sand still decides
Zonhoven’s vast sand amphitheatre is one of the few cyclocross venues that genuinely changes the outcome of a World Cup. On Sunday 4 January, De Kuil will again decide not only who handles the sand best, but who has managed the Kerstperiode load shrewdly enough to survive one last body blow.
The series context has shifted sharply. Laurens Sweeck still leads the men’s World Cup on points, but his campaign has effectively been pulled off the road after a heavy crash at Loenhout that resulted in a serious shoulder injury. He is not on the Zonhoven start list, turning round nine into a points opportunity for those behind rather than a head-to-head defence.
The course: three dives into the cauldron
Zonhoven’s defining feature is De Kuil: a huge, steep-sided sand bowl ringed by spectators, with the tape sending riders plunging in and clawing their way back out three times per lap.
The 2026 layout presents three now-established challenges:
Near-vertical sand chutes: Riders drop in at speed on loose, rutted sand. Commit late and you wash out; commit early and you risk going over the front. Line choice is everything.
Brutal sand run-ups: The exits are so steep and soft that even the best sand riders are often off the bike, favouring those who can run hard and repeatedly surge above threshold.
Off-camber sand along the rim: The traverses at the top of the pit expose tyre-pressure calls. Too hard and the bike skips; too soft and you bog down elsewhere.
Away from the pit, the course links fast grass, dirt connectors and short power straights. But rhythm never really settles. Each passage through De Kuil spikes heart rate and forces riders from flow into survival mode.
Weather and conditions: cold, heavy sand
Forecasts point to a cold afternoon, a maximum of 1°C, with the possibility of light snow or dampness. Inland sand like Zonhoven’s rarely firms up neatly; moisture tends to make it heavy rather than fast, lengthening run-ups and deepening ruts. That usually rewards clean decision-making and efficient running over pure power.
Men’s Elite: Van der Poel headlines, points in play
Picture by Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
The men’s start list is properly stacked, led by Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert, with the main World Cup protagonists behind them: Thibau Nys, Michael Vanthourenhout, Niels Vandeputte, Emiel Verstrynge, Lars van der Haar and Tibor Del Grosso all entered.
With Sweeck absent, the jersey becomes a maths problem. Nys sits closest on points, Vanthourenhout remains within reach, and Van der Poel – despite a reduced programme – is positioned to flip the series with another win.
Van der Poel remains the cleanest Zonhoven fit in the field. The steep drops reward his willingness to stay off the brakes, while the repeated exits suit his ability to produce large efforts without losing technique. And he is, of course, unbeaten this season.
Nys brings explosive speed and arrives with recent World Cup momentum, but Zonhoven often becomes a race of restraint rather than acceleration. Vanthourenhout, Vandeputte and Verstrynge all become contenders if the sand turns heavy and the race shifts toward repeated running efforts.
Van Aert hasn't been on on career-best form, but if he is close enough at the key moments, the torque he produces out of the pit and across the exposed connectors makes him dangerous.
Expect the selection to form through attrition rather than a single attack: small gaps through De Kuil that only one or two riders can close on the grass each lap.
Women’s Elite: Brand sets the reference
The women’s field is deep and clearly defined at the top. Lucinda Brand arrives as World Cup leader, with Puck Pieterse, Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, Denise Betsema and Shirin van Anrooij all on the start list.
Brand is the clear favourite. Zonhoven rewards riders who make the correct, boring decisions in the sand, and Brand’s ability to repeat that discipline lap after lap often proves decisive.
Pieterse brings volatility. Her power and commitment can turn the pit into a selection point rather than shared suffering, particularly if she commits fully to the drops early.
Alvarado and Betsema both have the speed to stay relevant, but the course usually becomes a late-race test of composure. There is also depth behind the headline names, with riders capable of turning top-five consistency into a podium if mistakes creep in ahead.
Zoe Bäckstedt is also entered. On a course built around repeated one-minute efforts and decisive handling, she is no longer here simply to survive the sand.
World Cup Zonhoven predictions and favourites
Men
1. Mathieu van der Poel
2. Wout van Aert
3. Thibau Nys
Women
1. Lucinda Brand
2. Puck Pieterse
3. Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado
Cover image credit: Alex Whitehead/SWpix.com
