The riders of Tormans Cyclo Cross Team will race seven times in eleven days during the busy Christmas period. This Sunday, Zoe Bäckstedt, Marie Schreiber and all men gathered on the grass field in Grembergen, sub municipality of Dendermonde, on the occasion of the twelfth World Cup of the season. The parcours was redefined and contained brand new washboard bumps and steps next to the known hill, barriers and bridge.  

Boxing Day started well for the team thanks to a third Junior World Cup victory for Zoe Bäckstedt. The British rider is unbeatable in the category so far this season and was almost 2 minutes faster than her main contender Leonie Bentvelt today. 18 year old Marie Schreiber finished 39th in the Elite Women’s category.

The best start in the U23 Men’s category was for Emiel Verstrynge, in his shirt of the Belgian national team. He made a small gap with world champion Ronhaar, who took over the lead in the second lap and battled for the podium with Mason and Hendrikx. Joran Wyseure and Verstrynge joined forces with their compatriots to keep their disadvantage within 30 seconds. In the end, the West-Flemish riders defeated the other riders in their group and finished 4th and 5th respectively. Frenchman Théo Thomas finished the race despite stomach problems. After three out of five races, Emiel Verstrynge is 4th in the World Cup classification. 

Meanwhile, the conditions of the surface deteriorated before the start of the start of the Elite Men’s race. Quinten Hermans and Corné van Kessel continued their impressive series of places of honor and finished 5th and 6th respectively at the end of a very intense race. Swiss champion Kevin Kuhn concluded the eight laps in 19th place, with Thomas Mein crossing the line in 26th position. With three races remaining, Hermans and van Kessel are 4th and 6th in the provisional World Cup ranking.