Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado will make her long-awaited return to racing this weekend, with the KNWU confirming she has been selected for the World Cup round in Flamanville on Sunday, 30th November 2025. It will be her first appearance of the 2025-26 cyclo-cross season after a knee injury forced her to miss the opening weeks.
The Dutchwoman had been sidelined since late September, including a withdrawal from the Meulebeke opener and several missed rounds that followed. Her comeback now gives the Netherlands a welcome boost at a time when two of the country’s biggest stars remain absent.
No Lucinda Brand or Fem van Empel
World Cup leader Lucinda Brand will not race in Flamanville. After winning the opening round in Tábor last Sunday, she has chosen to train through the second round instead of travelling to France.
Fem van Empel – who pulled out of the Koppenbergcross and has skipped every race since – is also not ready to return. The world champion continues to recover from the setback that halted her early-season campaign.
Alvarado’s return after a delayed start
Alvarado’s comeback marks her first race since the late summer. Earlier this autumn, her team Fenix-Deceuninck confirmed she was still dealing with persistent knee problems, forcing her to abandon plans for an early return in Meulebeke. That announcement came as a disappointment, given her heavy road programme earlier in 2025, which included the Vuelta España Femenina and the Tour de Suisse.
Now, after weeks of rehabilitation, she will line up in Flamanville with a view to rebuilding race rhythm as the World Cup intensifies.
A decorated cross rider returning to the fold
Alvarado remains one of the most successful riders of her generation. Her 2020 treble – world, European and Dutch national titles – still stands as one of the great cyclo-cross seasons. She has since added three Superprestige titles, the 2019–20 Trophy overall, the 2023–24 World Cup overall and seven individual World Cup victories.
Her enforced delay this autumn shifted expectations, but her return in Flamanville gives the peloton one more proven winner as the winter accelerates.
With Brand training, Van Empel still absent, and Alvarado back in the mix, the second round of the World Cup is shaping up as another unpredictable stop in a season already rich with storylines.
