Preview Besançon 2024 World Cup | Van der Poel ready to race, but he shouldn't count on the win just yet
Cyclo-cross
The holiday season is always packed with Belgian cyclo-cross events, but this weekend, part of the peloton will head to France for the World Cup in Besançon on Sunday. With big names like Mathieu van der Poel and Marianne Vos on the starting list, IDLProCycling.com eagerly previews the action ahead!
After taking a year off, the World Cup in Besançon is back, following its successful events in the 2021/2022 and 2022/2023 seasons. The inaugural winners were Eli Iserbyt and Lucinda Brand, followed by victories for Mathieu van der Poel and Puck Pieterse the next year.
Latest winners World Cup Besançon
2022/2023 Mathieu van der Poel / Puck Pieterse
2021/2022 Eli Iserbyt / Lucinda Brand
Course, weather and times Besançon 2024 World Cup
The course in Besançon, France, which is not far from the Swiss border, was partly designed by former cyclist Francis Mourey. He has kept the course largely unchanged compared to previous editions of the race in the French city. Of course, we will see the familiar cyclo-cross obstacles that we know so well from other World Cups, including barriers, a bridge, and stairs. Puck Pieterse showed the course in her 2023 reconnaissance video, which also featured these obstacles.
Weather
It’s quite chilly in France these days. On Sunday, temperatures will barely rise above freezing, but fortunately, it will stay dry in and around Besançon, with almost no wind.
Times (Sunday, December 29)
Start women: 1:40 PM local time (7:40 AM EST)
Finish women: 2:30 PM local time (8:30 AM EST)
Start men: 3:10 PM local time (9:10 AM EST)
Finish men: 4:10 PM local time (10:10 AM EST)
Favorites women's World Cup Besancón 2024
A total of 87 women are on the starting list for Besançon, including nearly all the big names. The notable exception is Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck), who will compete in the cyclo-cross race in Diegem on Monday instead. On the other hand, Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) is making her cyclo-cross season debut in Besançon, bringing a major name to the event.
After her strong performance in Gavere, Fem van Empel, another rider for the yellow-black formation, is the top favorite. The Dutchwoman proved on Boxing Day that she’s in excellent form after a knee injury disrupted her participation in Hulst and Zonhoven. Meanwhile, Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck) showed her high level in Zonhoven but didn’t race in Gavere.
Lucinda Brand is a constant presence in the races these days, and she has made the podium in every race this year, though her last victory was in Dublin. As the World Cup leader, Brand will fight hard to defend her position in France. The same goes for U23 leader Marie Schreiber, the rider from Luxembourg who is currently racing for SD Worx-Protime, which also has Blanka Vas. Schreiber already demonstrated in Hulst that she’s more than capable of pulling off a win.
Other strong contenders include Zoe Backstedt (Canyon//SRAM), who finished second in Zonhoven, and Inge van der Heijden (Crelan-Corendon), who placed third in Mol a day later. We can expect a fierce competition among the ladies in Besançon!
Top favorite: Fem van Empel (Visma | Lease a Bike)
Outsiders: Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck) and Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions)
Long shots: Marie Schreiber (SD Worx-Protime), Zoe Backstedt (Canyon//SRAM), Marianne Vos (Visma | Lease a Bike) and Inge van der Heijden (Corran-Corendon)
Favorites men's World Cup Besançon 2024
In the men’s race, Mathieu van der Poel is the undisputed favorite. This will be the Dutchman's fifth cyclo-cross event in eight days, but by skipping Diegem, he’s given himself some breathing room after Besançon. Van der Poel, fluent in French as the grandson of the late Raymond Poulidor, is always a welcome guest in France.
The riders who have come closest to challenging him in recent races are Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) and Laurens Sweeck (Crelan-Corendon). Thibau Nys has also been competitive, but he won’t be racing in Besançon. Vanthourenhout stayed relatively close to Van der Poel on Boxing Day, while Sweeck impressed with his sand-riding skills in Mol.
While Nys will be absent in France, Baloise Trek Lions will rely on Dutchmen Lars van der Haar and Pim Ronhaar, who are likely to contend for those highly-coveted podium spots. Other challengers include Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Toon Aerts (Deschacht-Hens-FSP), Joran Wyseure, and Emiel Verstrynge (Crelan-Corendon).
Wout van Aert (Visma | Lease a Bike) will not participate but will return to racing on January 4 in Gullegem.
Top favorite: Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck)
Outsiders: Michael Vanthourenhout (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Laurens Sweeck (Crelan-Corendon)
Long shots: Lars van der Haar, Pim Ronhaar (Baloise Trek Lions), Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Emiel Verstrynge (Crelan-Corendon)
TV broadcast Besançon 2024 World Cup
The women’s race begins at 1:30 PM local time (7:30 AM EST) and will be broadcast on Eurosport 1, HBO Max, Discovery+, and Sporza. The men’s race starts at 3:00 PM local time (9:00 AM EST) on the same channels.
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Latest Comments
- Well explained, thanks for the clarity! Daniel DantasDanieldantas20-12-2024
- This is the kind of 'news' that belongs in a cheap tabloid. No matter how boring the offseason gets, nobody wants to read this.
santiagobenites19-12-2024 - I wish we could have seen him try. He'd absolutely get dropped before Pogi overtakes his domestiquesVeganpotter10-12-2024
- Talk is cheap! Next year barring crashes with a healthy team... all well be on track! Some need to talk to make a headline!mootman27-11-2024
- I do not see this event listed on HBO Max Sports Online? Can anyone confirm? Thanks!
MrYuck23-11-2024 - It seemed that he was focusing forward at the time of the crash, after seeing a quick video snippet. But one thing I think he should focus on more intently is breaking a bad habit he has, right now. And that is his constant looking over his shoulders. He does that so much, that I am very sure it is not good for him. Simply watch videos of the greats of CX and you will see very little of that constant looking over their shoulders. That is a behavior that betrays a bit of insecurity on his part. He shouldn't be so concerned, incessantly, about what is over his shoulder. He needn't worry they didn't all disappear. He neds to keep his focus more ahead of himself, and he needs to pay a bit more attention to himself, in a confident manner. It is very frustrating to watch, because it is apparent that he has a lot of potential, and is in much better shape thwan many of his competitors, but the mental game needs to be sharpened more, because that part of strategy plays a huge part in the final results
reemmo022-11-2024 - hahahaha love this shit! I didnt even watched the race, but reading all the gossip articles of how stupid this is!Zatoichi19-11-2024
- Van Aert is really handsome. He can influence me all day! Ditto for Philipsen. Why do you think many of us love cycling?: to see heroic attempts at climbing mountains at high altitudes or to watch speedsters sprint for the finish line or to watch a human being ride at break neck speed down a tricky descent? No, it's all about their lean physiques and muscular legs. (apologies for objectifying these dedicated and amazing athletes).BarwonHeadsUp25-10-2024
- It is unfortunate that the author can't feel the joy that Pogacar brings to the sport and his fans who are legion and I for one feel lucky to have watched such a memorable performance and historic season From the Strada until yesterday with multiple wins in stages in both tours and beyond dominance in the World's. He is proud to wear the Rainbow stripes, shows his leadership to protect his fellows and is as courteous and sportsman-like as the sport allows. He goes early to not have to respond to each attack as all the rest would make him do it. Any racer who could would do the same. Don't "grow tired" of greatness as it is always fleeting.ccrider13-10-2024
- What load of rubbish. Pog is likely a once in a generation cyclist, the like of which hasn't been seen since 'the Cannibal '. How many people were complaining that Merckx was making racing predictable? I remember this year's World RR as one of the most exciting I've watched. Mainly BECAUSE Pog was the favourite and launched what everyone thought (Pog included) was a suicidal attack with 80km to go. For the next 2 hours, I was on the edge of my seat thinking "this is too much, even for Pog". Maybe Zonnefeld prefers the snooze-fest that is a bunch sprint? Like most people I know, I can't watch two hours of the bunch riding very fast... I wait for the final 5km and watch just the sprint. In any event, most races are won from a sprint or lone break. What difference does it make who makes the lone break? Ultimately, the other contenders will have to figure out a way to beat Pog. Even if that means collaboration between teams. It's going to be an exciting few seasons, until the next Pog arrives on the scene. If this is boring, heaven knows what exciting looks like!Michael513-10-2024