Mathieu van der Poel grabs victory at Gavere Cyclocross World Cup

Dutch cyclist Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) won the cyclocross World Cup race in the Belgian municipality of Gavere. The race in Gavere is the 11th of 14 stages in the UCI World Cup race. The cycling event drew an exceptionally large crowd on Boxing Day.

The cyclocross race in the Belgian municipality of Gavere was part of the UCI Cyclocross World Cup for the first time. The race proved to be an old-school cross: technical, muddy and with many eager spectators forming a long queue at the box office. Even on Boxing Day, competitive cycling proved as popular as ever in Flanders.

Top names like Tom Pidcock, Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel competed, the latter taking the lead after 2:15. The Dutchman proved triumphant until the end and claimed victory. Belgian champion Wout van Aert came in second at 27 seconds, while British world champion Tom Pidcock finished third at 54 seconds. The fourth place went to European champion Michael Vanthourenhout at 1:53 and Dutchman Lars van der Haar completed the top five at 2:20.

The next UCI Cyclocross World Cup race will take place in the Belgian municipality of Zonhoven on 8 January 2023.

Watch: Long queues at Cyclocross World Cup race in Gavere

^{#FlandersNewsService | Picture: Mathieu Van Der Poel crosses the finish line at the World Cup Cyclocross in Gavere, Belgium, on 26 December 2022 © BELGA PHOTO DAVID PINTENS / Video © BELGA VIDEO ANN BRAECKMAN}