This Saturday, Lauren Molengraaf became European cyclocross champion in the junior category on the challenging circuit on the Citadel of Namur.
The 17 year old Dutch rider, who recently won the first two World Cup races, actually took a cautious start, concluding the first lap in fourth place at thirteen seconds behind the leading trio.
Molengraaf caught her competitors in the second lap and accelerated several times in the lead, without being able to distance Italian rider Valentina Corvi and Belgian rider Xaydee Van Sinaey, who started the final lap together.
The exciting battle ended in a victory for Molengraaf, who was faster than Corvi in the final hectometers, offering Tormans Cyclo Cross Team the second European title in a row after Zoe Bäckstedt’s succes last year.
In the beginning of the afternoon, Arne Baers represented Belgium for the first time in a championship.
Despite a crash in the start of the U23 race, which beat him back to the last position, he rode an impressive race and managed to finish in tenth place after seven laps of racing.
« I’m particularly proud on this title because I won it at the end of a hard race. As the race favorite I had quite some pressure and I think that’s why I had a bad start. But despite this, I managed to ride to the lead of the race. Valentina Corvi was a strong contender, we delivered an exciting battle. That’s why it is so nice to win the gold medal. I want to enjoy this new jersey as much as possible while I’m waiting for my next goals, the World Cups and the world championships in my home country. »
« Taking into account the bad luck today, I can be pleased with this tenth place. It was really a pity to start my first European Championship with a crash in the start. A crash happened in front of me, another rider bumped into me so I could only start my race in last position. My disappointment was rapidly replaced by eagerness to start the long chase. After the first lap I was not in the top 30 yet, but thanks to a constant rhythm during the whole race I eventually managed to achieve a top ten result. I’m grateful for the support of my team Tormans Cyclo Cross Team, together we will build on this nice performance to pursue my progression in the next weeks. »
