Joran Wyseure wins HG Cross Heerde 2026 after recovering from chaotic start

Joran Wyseure recovered from a chaotic start to win the 2026 HG Cross Heerde, beating Joris Nieuwenhuis after a race-long fight through the heavy sand beside the Heerderstrand.

The Crelan-Corendon rider was left around 25th after confusion over the start procedure, but steadily worked his way back into contention before making the decisive difference late in the nine-lap race. Nieuwenhuis finished seven seconds behind, with Niels Vandeputte third at 16 seconds.

Felipe Orts took fourth ahead of 18-year-old Giel Lejeune, who spent much of the second half of the race matching the established elite contenders at the front.

How it unfolded

Heerde had already been expected to reward riders who could combine power with control in the sand. The lakeside course mixed long sandy sections with damp grass, woodland and firmer connecting roads, broadly matching the challenge outlined in our HG Cross Heerde men’s preview.

The first problem arrived before the riders reached any of it.

The green light appeared almost immediately after the 30-second warning. Riders on one side of the grid reacted and accelerated away, while several on the other side hesitated, apparently believing there had been a false start.

Wyseure was among those caught out. Despite starting from the front row, he entered the course well down the field and later estimated he had fallen to around 25th position.

Vandeputte, Nieuwenhuis and Team Bomba Join pair Mees Hendrikx and Ryan Kamp avoided the worst of the confusion and reached the opening section near the front. Vandeputte set much of the early pace, while Orts quickly moved into contention after a less-than-perfect start of his own.

Wyseure works his way back as the front keeps changing

Five riders initially gained a small advantage, but the race remained fluid. More riders returned at the start of lap two before Hendrikx briefly opened a gap, and by the third circuit there was still no decisive separation.

Nieuwenhuis then raised the pressure. The Dutchman, who had won the Nacht van Woerden four days earlier on his first start of the season, helped reduce the leading group to the strongest riders.

Nieuwenhuis, Vandeputte, Orts, Hendrikx and Lejeune formed the first clear selection. Wyseure had meanwhile ridden through the traffic and bridged across, undoing the damage caused by the start.

His recovery was not completely smooth. Wyseure appeared to be under pressure during the fifth lap, as did Hendrikx, while Lejeune looked increasingly comfortable in a group full of more experienced elite riders.

Lejeune takes the race to the favourites

Lejeune produced one of the most striking passages of the race in lap six. Rather than simply holding a wheel, the 18-year-old moved past Nieuwenhuis in the sand, took the front and continued to press.

He briefly gained a few metres but could not turn it into a lasting attack. The leaders regrouped early in the seventh lap, with six riders still effectively contesting the win.

Wyseure then changed the pace.

Hendrikx was the first to lose contact when the Belgian accelerated, while Orts, Lejeune and Vandeputte also began to struggle to follow cleanly through the repeated sand sections. Nieuwenhuis was the exception, staying close enough for the pair to move clear during lap eight.

Wyseure saves his best for the final sand section

Wyseure reached the bell with a small advantage, but Nieuwenhuis was not finished. The Dutchman closed the gap and returned to his wheel, leaving the race to be decided on the final circuit.

The difference came on the long sand section beside the water.

Wyseure had consistently been among the quickest riders there without repeatedly pushing beyond the limit. After the finish he explained that the priority had been to stay controlled enough to avoid the mistakes that could cost far more than a small gain in speed.

On the final lap he stopped holding anything back. Wyseure committed through the sand, opened several metres over Nieuwenhuis and carried that advantage onto firmer ground.

Nieuwenhuis had expected the earlier chase to take more out of him. It never did. Wyseure continued to drive all the way to the finish and won in 1:00:05, seven seconds clear of the Dutchman.

Vandeputte secured third at 16 seconds, with Orts another seven seconds behind. Lejeune’s aggressive race was rewarded with fifth at 29 seconds, ahead of Hendrikx, Laurens Sweeck, Kamp, Wout Janssen and Yordi Corsus.

A win built on recovery

The final margin does not tell the full story. Wyseure had already spent the opening laps moving through traffic before he could even begin racing the riders who had started cleanly at the front.

From there he still had to reach a leading group that was already beginning to split, recover when the pace briefly put him under pressure and judge the effort well enough to have something left for the final sand section.

Nieuwenhuis, meanwhile, continues an encouraging start after illness delayed his season. Victory in Woerden followed by second in Heerde gives him two front-of-race performances from his first two starts, even if Wyseure proved stronger when the race finally split.

Lejeune’s fifth place deserves attention too. He did not simply benefit from others fading around him. He took the lead himself in lap six and forced the favourites to respond before remaining within half a minute of the winner at the finish.

HG Cross Heerde men 2026 result