It’s been a long season with a lot of great racing from a great group of riders. Each week since mid-September I’ve been cranking out weekly power rankings for European and US cross racers. This week, I’ve decided to put together one last ranking for 2009/10 that takes into account the entire season—it’s the top ten riders in cross this year. I’m going in reverse order this week to help build a bit of suspense. But if you’ve been following my column this year, you can probably guess the top 3. So without further delay, here’s the final power rankings of 2009/2010:
Archive for the ‘Power Rankings’ Category
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 24
Thursday, March 4th, 2010CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 23
Monday, March 1st, 2010After last weeks last-lap slug-fest between Niels Albert and Zdenk Stybar, the final race of the year took a decidedly different tone as Bart Wellens rode solo for eight laps to pick up the win. Wellens’ victory is his first major win since 2008. Behind, the rest of the top-ten came in within ten-seconds of each other. The bulk of the pressure was on Sven Nys as he tried to wrap up the GVA Trophy overall. However, Nys took the smarter route allowing others to battle it out while he settled for sixth and picked up his sixth-straight GVA Trophy. In front of Nys, Zdenk Stybar and Kevin Pauwels rouded out the podium, making it a Telenet-Fidea sweep. Meanwhile, cousins Sven and Dieter Vanthourenhout rounded out the top-five. (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 22
Sunday, February 21st, 2010With just one race left this year, Zdenek Stybar has returned to the top step of the podium and won another major competition. The World Champion did just enough Sunday to hold-off a charging Niels Albert on a slick, icy course in Vorselaar, taking the win and the Superprestige overall title. The big surprise came from Radomir Simunek who lead for a majority of the race before a crash allowed Stybar to catch him with 3 laps to go. From there, it was an all-out dash to the line as Albert and Sven Nys would eventually catch and pass Stybar as he headed to the pits. Albert took full advantage of Stybar’s momentary stoppage, launching an attack for the win. Chaos ensued including a spat between Nys and Simunek resulting in both men going down in a corner, allowing Stybar to slip-by to chase Albert alone. (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 21
Thursday, February 11th, 2010One week after the spectacle that was the World Championships, the cyclocross community returned to its unofficial homeland for 3 races in Belgium. As is typical of this time of year, unless riders get some serious start money or are in contention for a top spot in either the Superprestige or GVA Trophy, they usually wind down their season. As a result we have another week with some major changes in the rankings. Francis Mourey, Martin Bina, Martin Zlamalik and Christan Heule all elected not to race this week and were dropped from the rankings. Needless to say, things are being shaken-up as we enter the final few weeks of the season.
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 20
Thursday, February 4th, 2010In what was billed as one of the best cyclocross races in years, the 2010 World Championships in Tabor, Czech Republic delivered the fairy tale story every rider (and fan) dreams about. Wearing his nation’s colors, Zdenek Stybar destroyed one of the best fields ever assembled, and collected the Rainbow Jersey in front of a hometown crowd. Stybar spent more than half the race by himself and wound-up winning by 21 seconds. Behind, the usual heads of state were noticeably absent, as a bevy of somewhat unsung riders made their bids for podium spots. Sven Nys, the other early favorite, found himself out of contention for the win, and could only watch as fellow countryman Klaas Vantornout picked-up the Silver Medal. Nys held-on for Bronze, while defending champion Niels Albert dropped-out with a few laps to go. (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 20
Thursday, January 28th, 2010Just when I had written-off Niels Albert’s chances for a Worlds repeat, he comes storming through to surprise everyone, winning the final round of the World Cup in Hoogerheide, Netherlands. Needless to say, it was a bittersweet weekend for Albert, because Zdenek Stybar did just enough to take home the World Cup overall, finishing 2nd. Stybar received a heap of help from his teammate Kevin Pauwels who finished 3rd and never really challenged Stybar’s bid for his first World Cup title. Pauwels was followed across the line by fellow countrymen Klaas Vantornout and Sven Nys to fill-out the top-5. And, with the Belgians picking up 6 of the top 10 spots, they’re clearly ready for the World Championships this weekend. Behind the Belgian brigade, Gerben de Knegt finished inside (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 19
Saturday, January 23rd, 2010With a bevy of freshly-crowned National Champions, the cyclocross world returned to a bit of normalcy this past weekend with the penultimate round of the World Cup in Roubaix. The course, which finishes on the famed Roubaix Velodrome, has become famous for its harrowing descents and horrific conditions. Sure enough, the sloppy mud and technical nature of the course led to a natural selection containing all of the big names—except Niels Albert who was clearly suffering from the broken rib he received thanks to a run in with a drunk fan at the Belgian National Championship. Zdenek Stybar was the strongest on the day; he rode clear of the rest of the top-5 with a few laps to go. As a result, he takes sole control of the (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 18
Thursday, January 14th, 2010This past weekend, the superstars of cyclocross split-up and went home as the Belgians, Dutch, Czech, French and Italians (just to name a few) all held their National Championships this past weekend. Arguably, the biggest race is the Belgian Championship—they have the biggest names and the deepest field of any country. Sven Nys’ victory in Oostmalle came as no surprise; the seven-time National Champ has been on a tear lately. In the Czech Republic, it was much of the same as Zdenek Stybar took home top honors ahead of a respectable group of riders. The biggest surprise came in the Netherlands, where Lars Boom seemingly popped-out of nowhere to out-sprint Gerben de Knegt to take the win. All-in-all, it was another exciting weekend; now everyone can (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 17
Thursday, January 7th, 2010The New Year kicked-off in style this week with no less than a dozen cross races in Europe. No race was more important than the GP Sven Nys, which in addition to being named after a cross superstar, was a round of the Gazet van Antwerpen Trophy. Nys took the victory himself in incredible fashion over Zdenk Stybar, while Niels Albert finished a distant 3rd. Behind them, Gerben de Knegt continued his push towards a national title and potential World Championship podium, finishing 4th; while a resurgent Francis Mourey took 5th. Beyond the top-5, there were a few surprises, including an absent Bart Wellens and a fading Kevin Pauwels. The rest of the top-ten was filled with the usual cast of characters. (more…)
CycloCross Power Rankings – Week 16
Thursday, December 31st, 2009It’s Christmastime throughout the world and that can only mean one thing: lots and lots of European cyclocross racing. Since last week’s Power Rankings came out there have been 4 big races: a Belgian national-level event, a round of the World Cup in Zolder, and rounds of the Superprestige and GVA Trophy. The only consistent theme throughout all 4 races was the domination by the Belgian riders. Nys bookended the week with wins at the Noordzeecross and the GVA Trophy race in Loenhout. In between, Kevin Pauwels picked-up a huge win, taking Round 7 of the World Cup, while Niels Albert won the Superprestige race in Diegem. Needless to say, it was an action-packed week and a great one for the home riders. (more…)
