Cyclocross News Roundup - 28 December 2008

Albert team captain BKCP-Powerplus, Vantornout wins Torhout, Al and Kupfernagel the best in Antwerpen and 2009-2010 USA Championships in Bend..

Albert team captain BKCP-Powerplus
Niels Albert will be the team captain of the new BKCP-Powerplus team of manager Christoph Roodhooft which will join the cyclocross per January 1, 2009. The team has a contract for three years and consists of four professional and five U23 riders. The full team will be:

Elite: Niels Albert (22), Radomir Simunek (25), Dieter Vanthourenhout (23), Philipp Walsleben (/21)

U23: Jim Aernouts (19), Gianni Denolf (21), Wim Leemans (21), Lubomir Petrus (18), Arnaud Van den Abeele (18)

The first race of the team will be the GP Sven Nys in Baal on January 1, 2009.


Klaas Vantornout wins Sylvestercross in Torhout
Klaas Vantornout has won the Sylvestercross in his own Torhout (December 27). Italian Marco Bianco and Belgian Ben Berden completed the podium. The race was animated by ten riders namely Davy Commeyne, Jan Soetens, Jan Verstraeten, Klaas Vantornout, David Willemsens, Ben Berden, Kamil Ausbuher, Marco Bianco, Gerben De Knegt and Patrick Van Leeuwen. Lap by lap some riders dropped and the definitive decision came after 40 minutes of racing when Vantornout attacked and nobody was able to follow.

Result
1 Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Sunweb Projob Cycling Team 1.01.10
2 Marco Bianco (Ita) L´Arcobaleno Carraro Team 0.13
3 Ben Berden (Bel) Revor Cycling Team 0.28
4 Gerben de Knegt (Ned) Rabobank 0.34
5 Kamil Ausbuher (Cze) Exe Jeans
6 Jan Soetens (Bel) Revor Cycling Team 0.48
7 Davy Commeyne (Bel) Revor Cycling Team 1.02
8 Jan Verstraeten (Bel) Sunweb Projob Cycling Team 1.08
9 David Willemsens (Bel) Revor Cycling Team 1.18
10 Patrick Van Leeuwen (Ned) Het Snelle Wiel 1.38


Mourey and Coenen winners in Dagmarsellen and Differdange
Francis Mourey, who didn't competed for France in the World Cup of Zolder, traveled to Switzerland for the Int. Radquer Dagmersellen and with success. The Frenchman dominated the whole race holding off Swiss riders Florian Vogel and Lukas Flückiger by four seconds. In the GP DAF in Differdange Belgian Davy Coenen won ahead of Jan Chrobak and David Pagnier.


Thijs Al and Hanka Kupfernagel the best in Antwerpen
Thijs Al and Hanka Kupfernagel are the winners of the fourth Scheldecross in Antwerpen (December 19). Al had as usual a cannonball start and only Vantornout and last year's winner Radomir Simunek were able to follow the Dutch rider. In the final laps Al dropped his companions to take his second win of the season.

World champion Hanka Kupfernagel took the victory in the women's category. Kupfernagel won with a eight seconds lead on Dutch Marianne Vos and 46 seconds over Sanne Cant. Vos attacked early in the race and only Kupfernagel joined her. The two dominated the race until Kupfernagel started putting on pressure during the penultimate lap. Vos crashed but was able to return. A second attack of Kupfernagel was the decisive one as the current Olympic Champion Poins race wasn't able to answer.

Result Men
1 Thijs Al (Ned) AA Drink - BeOne 1.01.02
2 Klaas Vantornout (Bel) Sunweb Projob Cycling Team 0.19
3 Radomír Šimunek (Cze) Palmans - Cras 0.38
4 Zdenek Stybar (Cze) Fidea Cycling Team 1.36
5 Dieter Vanthourenhout (Bel) Palmans - Cras 1.46
6 Gerben de Knegt (Ned) Rabobank
7 Richard Groenendaal (Ned) AA Drink - Be One 1.49
8 Rob Peeters (Bel) Landbouwkrediet - Tönissteiner 1.55
9 Lars Boom (Ned) Rabobank 2.03
10 Kenneth Van Compernolle (Bel) Sunweb Projob Cycling Team 2.23

Result Women
1 Hanka Kupfernagel (Ger) Itera 40.35
2 Marianne Vos (Ned) Team DSB Bank 0.08
3 Sanne Cant (Bel) 0.46
4 Daphny van den Brand (Ned)
5 Helen Wyman (GBr)
6 Wendy Simms (Can) 1.15
7 Sanne van Paassen (Ned) 1.40
8 Veerle Ingels (Bel) 2.10
9 Reza Hormes-Ravenstein (Ned) 2.40
10 Nikki Harris (GBr) 2.45


2009-10 USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships awarded to Bend, Ore.

Cyclo-Cross National Calendar’s Marquee Event Returns to Pacific Northwest

The 2009-10 USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championships have been awarded to the city of Bend, Ore., the national governing body announced today.

The USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championships were last held in the Pacific Northwest when Portland hosted the 2003 and 2004 editions. Since then, the annual event has been held in Providence, R.I. (2005-06) and Kansas City, Kan. (2007-08). With scheduled dates of Dec. 10-13 in 2009 and Dec. 9-12 in 2010, the two-year commitment returns the national championships to one of the most popular hotbeds of cyclo-cross racing in North America.

With more than 2,000 athletes from around the nation expected to compete in Bend next year, 35 national titles will be on the line throughout several categories of racing; including junior, U23, collegiate, masters and elite divisions for men and women.

“Bend is a special place and our entire community is honored to host the cycling world for the USA Cycling Cyclo-cross National Championships,” said Doug LaPlaca, president and CEO of Visit Bend and co-chair of the local organizing committee. “Anyone who has visited Bend understands the enormous enthusiasm and opportunity here – not just for cycling and cyclo-cross, but for sports and recreation in general.”

Considered by many to be a hub for outdoor sports enthusiasts, Bend also plays host to the Cascade Cycling Classic, a USA Cycling National Racing Calendar event, recently hosted the XTERRA Trail Running National Championships, and will host the USA Triathlon Winter Triathlon National Championships next month. Additionally, the town has recently been named America’s Top Adventure Town by Men’s Journal, America’s Top Trail Running Town by Outside, one of the country’s Top-Five Ski Towns by Travel + Leisure, one of the Top-10 U.S. Triathlon Towns by Triathlete and “The Next Moab” by Mountain Bike.

• Discuss this race and the sport with other cycling fans from around the world on the Daily Peloton.com Forums and Chat Room.
• Sponsor the daily peloton & advertise your product - contact us.
• Join the Daily Peloton crew, writers, photographers and techs with a passion for cycling and a yen to write: long hours, demanding work and lots of fun.