Preview 2025 Cyclo-cross World Cup Hoogerheide | The final test for Mathieu van der Poel ahead of Liévin

Hoogerheide, the sacred ground for cyclo-cross! Two years ago, this location in the Netherlands hosted an incredible World Championship where local Dutch heroes Mathieu van der Poel and Fem van Empel took the victories in their respective categories. In 2025, the cyclo-cross circuit returns to its traditional role as the final race before the World Championships, and a decisive World Cup event. IDLProCycling.com walks you through all the details!

Hoogerheide is firmly Van der Poel territory. Mathieu’s father, Adrie, has been designing the course for years and has done so with great success. Mathieu excels here, having won six World Cup races and claiming the World Championship title two years ago. The last Belgian to win in Hoogerheide was Eli Iserbyt in 2022, while Lars van der Haar claimed victory in 2017.

Among the women, Dutch riders like Marianne Vos and Lucinda Brand feature prominently on the recent winners’ list, with Fem van Empel’s World Championship win still fresh in memory. Van Empel will be back on Sunday, racing in her home province as last year’s World Cup winner.

Most recent winners 2025 World Cup Hoogerheide

2024 Mathieu van der Poel / Fem van Empel
2023 Mathieu van der Poel / Fem van Empel (World Championships)
2022 Eli Iserbyt / Marianne Vos
2021 Cancelled
2020Mathieu van der Poel / Lucinda Brand
2019 Mathieu van der Poel / Lucinda Brand
2018 Mathieu van der Poel / Sanne Cant
2017 Lars van der Haar / Marianne Vos
2016 Mathieu van der Poel / Sophie de Boer
2015 Mathieu van der Poel / Eva Lechner
2014 Zdenek Stybar / Marianne Vos (World Championships)

Course, weather and times 2025 World Cup Hoogerheide

The Hoogerheide course hasn’t changed much from the World Championship layout used last winter. The 3,174-meter circuit includes 2,459 meters of grass, 391 meters of asphalt, and 324 meters of forest. Riders start on a slight uphill curve. From there, they turn into the field near the pit zone before entering the wooded area around the '12 Apostles Tree.'

The course then loops back toward the pit zone, passing barriers before heading up the Uilenberg climb. From there, the course transitions to a paved section leading to the stairs, followed by a sharp turn into the uphill finishing straight on Scheldeweg.

Weather

Rain is expected across the Netherlands in the latter half of the week, with light rain possible on Saturday and temperatures around 5°C.

Times (Sunday, January 26, 2024)

Women's start: 1:40 PM local time (7:40 AM EST)
Finish women: 2:30 PM local time (8:30 AM EST)
Men's start: 3:10 PM local time (9:10 AM EST)
Men's finish: 4:10 PM local time (10:10 AM EST)

Women's favorites 2025 World Cup Hoogerheide

With the World Championship fast approaching, all the big names will gather for the final World Cup of the season. Fem van Empel (Visma | Lease a Bike), last year’s World Cup winner and the 2023 World Champion at Hoogerheide, is the top favorite.

Her main challengers are Lucinda Brand (Baloise Glowi Lions) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck). Not just on Saturday or Sunday, but also for the rainbow jersey. Both will be eager to test themselves against Van Empel ahead of the World Championships.

Further contenders include Dutch stars Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck), as well as Marie Schreiber, Blanka Vas (SD Worx-Protime), and Zoe Backstedt (Canyon/SRAM). Other notable participants include Sara Casasola, Manon Bakker, Inge van der Heijden (Crelan-Corendon), Leonie Bentveld, and Denise Betsema (Pauwels Sauzen-Cibel). Annemarie Worst will also return to racing, representing Seven Racing.

Top favorite: Fem van Empel (Visma | Lease a Bike)
Outsiders: Lucinda Brand (Baloise Glowi Lions) and Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck)
Long shots: Marie Schreiber (SD Worx-Protime), Zoe Backstedt (Canyon/SRAM), Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike), Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck) 

Men's favorites 2025 World Cup Hoogerheide

Who can stop Mathieu van der Poel? That’s the big question ahead of the World Championships in Liévin. In Hoogerheide, the Dutch Alpecin-Deceuninck rider will have the chance to once again dominate on home soil – and possibly demoralize his rivals ahead of the main event. But Van der Poel doesn't really think like that, and will likely focus more on winning in front of his home crowd.

Wout van Aert won’t be racing, having ended his cyclo-cross season after Maasmechelen. This opens the door for other challengers, such as Joris Nieuwenhuis (Ridley), who finished second last year and could benefit from fresher legs after having to miss much of the season.

Thibau Nys (Baloise Glowi Lions) has been in exceptional form throughout January, and his teammates Lars van der Haar, who recently finished third in Benidorm, and Pim Ronhaar, who placed third in last year’s race, are also contenders.

Belgian riders Michael Vanthourenhout and Eli Iserbyt are leading the way on behalf of Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal, while Laurens Sweeck, Emiel Verstrynge, and Joran Wyseure (Crelan-Corendon) are also aiming for strong results. Toon Aerts (Deschacht-Hens-FSP), Felipe Orts (Ridley), and Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck) are also expected to perform well.

Top favorite: Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck)
Outsiders: Thibau Nys (Baloise Glowi Lions) and Joris Nieuwenhuis (Ridley)
Long shots: Eli Iserbyt (Pauwels Sauzen-Cibel), Pim Ronhaar, Lars van der Haar (Baloise Glowi Lions) and Laurens Sweeck (Correlan-Corendon)

TV broadcast 2025 World Cup Hoogerheide

The Hoogerheide World Cup race will be broadcast on multiple channels. Eurosport will cover the event via its main channel and HBO Max from 1:30 PM local time (7:30 AM EST), alongside Telenet / Proximus Pickx and a livestream by NOS.

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