Laurens Sweeck claimed his first win of the season with a brilliantly timed surge past Niels Vandeputte in the final metres of Superprestige Niel, taking victory by less than half a wheel after an hour of attritional, tightly controlled racing. Michael Vanthourenhout, in the white and red leader’s jersey of the Superprestige, completed the trio that shaped the race but had to settle for third after losing contact in the final corners.
On a dry but slippery Jaarmarktcross course littered with fallen leaves, the early laps were marked by repeated slips and scrabbles for traction on the steep banks. Joris Nieuwenhuis and Sweeck set a strong early tempo, but gaps proved elusive until the start of lap three when Sweeck tightened the pace on the pavement. The response was instant. The field stretched, reshuffled and reformed until only Sweeck, Vandeputte and Vanthourenhout remained clear.
From that point, the race settled into a familiar rhythm. Vandeputte surfed the wooded cambers with a light touch, Sweeck stamped on the short rises, and Vanthourenhout waited, watched and marked every move. A brief interruption came when Jente Michels bridged across from the chase on lap five, followed later by Sweeck’s teammate Emiel Verstrynge, but the front trio resisted every attempt to unsettle them.
The first real test came on lap six when Vanthourenhout attacked out of the sand, forcing Sweeck to respond and momentarily putting Vandeputte under strain. Behind them, Felipe Orts Lloret’s promising chase collapsed with a slip in the sand, leaving Verstrynge and Toon Vandebosch to keep the gap stable at around fifteen seconds.
It was Vandeputte who finally broke the deadlock. On lap seven, he launched a high-powered move on the off-camber climb, moving clear with a smoothness and authority that suggested this might be the winning moment. He started the penultimate lap with eight seconds in hand, but the deep, dragging sand pit reshaped the race once more. Vandeputte laboured, Sweeck and Vanthourenhout charged, and within seconds the advantage was gone.
The three leaders took the bell together. Each pushed the pace, each tested the others, but none could force a meaningful gap. Vandeputte led onto the finishing straight, Sweeck locked tightly onto his wheel. Only in the final metres did Sweeck finally swing past, launching a perfectly measured acceleration that carried him just clear before the line. It was a win built on patience, timing and just enough power to make the final pedal stroke count.
2025 Superprestige Niel Men result
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Brand takes control as Van der Heijden falls short in first outing as European champion
Lucinda Brand delivered a commanding performance to win the women’s race in Niel, turning the page quickly after finishing second at the European Championships just three days earlier. With the notable absences of world champion Fem van Empel, Belgian champion Marion Norbert Riberolle and Superprestige leader Sara Casasola, Brand seized the initiative early and never loosened her grip.
The Jaarmarktcross, one of the longest-standing events on the calendar, demands finesse through its sand and cambers and strength on its steep banks. Aniek van Alphen made the sharpest start, but a costly slip on a steep rise in the opening minutes handed Brand the opening she needed. The Baloise Glowi Lions leader attacked instantly, and only newly crowned European champion Inge van der Heijden could respond.
The pair rode clear with Van Alphen and Hélène Clauzel already battling behind. Van der Heijden used her technical finesse to stay close, especially in the sand, where she was smooth and confident. But Brand’s heavier engine was decisive on the longer drags and more open sections. The gap hovered at five or six seconds for the first three laps, a fragile but persistent margin.
Only in the fourth lap did the balance tip for good. Brand’s tempo remained unbroken, her lines consistent, her rhythm through the sand relentless. Van der Heijden continued to fight, but the effort to stay close gradually drained her resistance. By lap five the gap had risen to fifteen seconds, and Van Alphen, riding strongly behind and thrilling spectators with flawless passes through the sand, could not close the gap to the leaders.
Brand, despite riding with a bloodied knee from an early slide, was otherwise immaculate. She controlled the race without taking risks, pushed where she was strongest and managed the trickier sections with assurance. In the final lap she had time to interact with the crowd, high-fiving fans as she closed in on her fifth victory of the season.
Van der Heijden, in her first race wearing the European stripes, crossed the line as a clear runner-up and took over the Superprestige lead in the absence of the injured Casasola. Van Alphen secured third after a committed and technically impressive ride, though her early slip meant she never had the chance to contest the win.
Both races at Niel underlined familiar truths in cyclocross: one mistake can reshape the race completely, and the Jaarmarktcross rewards those who can ride its sand and cambers with confidence, patience and just enough boldness when it matters most.
2025 Superprestige Niel Women result
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Main photo credit: Getty
