Sven Nys has put the lackluster start of his cyclocross season behind and won the first round of the Superprestige in Ruddervoorde with more than half a minute over strongman Niels Albert. It was Albert first loss of the season - and Nys' first win. Zdenek Stybar held off Sven Vanthourenhout and Klaas Vantournout for third.
Nys and Albert were together and ahead of the others quickly on the tight, twisting and muddy course. Mid-way through the race Nys' repeated accelerations put Albert behind little by little. Nys stormed away for a solo win which gives him back his confidence.
The Belgian had a bad starting position again, but made the best of it. "I rode my own pace, but then I realized I came closer second by second. I sat perfectly on the bike and I think I rode the tight corners a little better than Niels."
Albert confirmed this. "I wasn't 100% recuperated from yesterday. With Nys' bad starting position I went out all or nothing, but he was better. I started making some mistakes in the corners, losing a few meters here and there."
In the fifth lap, a small gap had opened that Albert was able to close again on the paved section. But Nys pressed on and with three laps remaining he had a six-second gap. Behind, Stybar was leading Vantournout, about 30 seconds back.
With two laps to go Nys had extended his lead to 14 seconds over Albert. The race was over.
The result was not what Nys had predicted. "If you look at the previous weeks, I would have been happy with even a top five. But I stayed calm."
Vantournout narrowly lost to Stybar and Vanthourenhout, admitting there was no way he could have stayed with Albert in the beginning. "He went out superfast. It's a bit disappointing to miss the podium twice, but I made a couple of mistakes. I am hopeful, though, that I can get a better result soon.
Results
1. Sven Nys
2. Niels Albert
3. Zdenek Stybar
4. Sven Vanthourenhout
5. Klaas Vantornout
6. Radomir Simunek
7. Bart Aernouts
8. Dieter Vanthourenhout
9. Enrico Franzoi
10. Kevin Pauwels