Preview Superprestige Boom 2023 | Cycling top to dance on their bikes on Tomorrowland grounds

Tomorrowland Winter Edition! Not in Alpe d'Huez, where the festivities take place annually, but in Boom: there, on Saturday, a cyclo-cross race will be held on the grounds of the world-famous dance festival. IDLProCycling.com tells you everything about the ins and outs in the run-up to the event!

The cyclo-cross race in Boom is in its ninth edition, and nearly all the big names of recent years are on the men's roll of honor: from Lars van der Haar to Eli Iserbyt, and from Mathieu van der Poel to Tom Pidcock. The latter won the race last year, although we also remember that day as an off day for Van der Poel: he fell and finished only thirteenth.

In the women's category, we spot one name on the list that managed to win here twice before: Lucinda Brand won in both 2020 and 2021, but this weekend she has chosen to start in Flamanville only on Sunday. Aniek van Alphen, last season's winner, will be there too, but spoiler alert: the competition certainly won't be mild for this Saturday's race in the vicinity of Antwerp, Belgium!

Most recent winners Superprestige Boom

2022 Tom Pidcock / Aniek van Alphen
2021 Wout van Aert / Lucinda Brand
2020 Eli Iserbyt / Lucinda Brand
2019 Toon Aerts / Alice Maria Arzuffi
2018 Mathieu van der Poel / Kim Van de Steene
2017 Wout van Aert / Maud Kaptheijns
2016 Lars van der Haar / Jolien Verschueren
2015 Lars van der Haar / Ellen Van Loy

Course, weather and times Superprestige Boom 2023

Those who love dance festivals will recognize the surroundings of the Superprestige cyclo-cross in Boom. Here, the well-known festival Tomorrowland is held annually over the course of two weekends, and, like the cyclo-cross race, it also takes place in the De Schorre domain.

The start and finish are located where the main stage of the festival usually stands, while the rest of the cyclo-cross race is held on a compact course: up and down the hills of the recreation area, meaning that punching on the uphill sections will be potentially important for the final outcome of the race.

Weather

It is cold these days in Europe, and Boom is no exception. On Saturday, the temperature will barely reach 1 degree Celsius, but fortunately, it will remain dry and the wind will not be too strong. However, it is a matter of dressing warmly, for both participants and spectators!

Times
Women's start: 1:40 p.m.
Women's finish: 2:30 p.m.
Men's start: 3:10 p.m. 
Men's finish: 4:10 p.m.

Women's favorites Superprestige Boom 2023

With Shirin van Anrooij (Baloise Trek Lions), the third of the three young top riders is also set to return. The Dutch native, after a long road season, chose to extend it a bit in early October in Beringen (third) and Waterloo (DNF and victory in the Trek Cup), but then understandably decided to stay off the scene for a month and a half. Now she's back, with a double weekend ahead!

Winning will not be an easy task for Van Anrooij, as this season's cyclo-cross for the ladies is mainly dominated by one woman: Fem van Empel, representing Jumbo-Visma, who is still on an impeccable winning streak of eight races. Last weekend in Kortrijk, after a two-weekend break, she was once again the dominant force.

The race in Boom - in the absence of Brand - will be a battle between four major women, as Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Alpecin-Deceuninck) are also at the starting line in Boom. Pieterse has not managed to win a race yet this season, but is fully confident that a victory will come soon. Alvarado, who currently leads the Superprestige standings, has already won five times and finished on the podium in every (!) race.

Aniek van Alphen (Cyclocross Reds), last year's winner, is also at the start, but repeating her victory seems a difficult task. We estimate that she, along with Denise Betsema (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), Annemarie Worst (Cyclocross Reds), Sanne Cant, Marion Norbert-Riberolle, Inge van der Heijden (Crelan-Corendon) and Kata Blanka Vas (SD Worx), will be competing for a spot in the top five.

Women's favorites Superprestige Boom, according to IDLProCycling.com

Top favorite: Fem van Empel (Jumbo-Visma)
Outsiders: Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Alpecin-Deceuninck)
Long shots: Shirin van Anrooij (Baloise Trek Lions), Denise Betsema (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), Kata Blanka Vas (SD Worx) and Aniek van Alphen (Cyclocross Reds)

Men's favorites Superprestige Boom 2023

The pattern we've seen all season continues in Boom: not all top riders will start. This time, Baloise Trek Lions has chosen to field Lars van der Haar and Pim Ronhaar in Flamanville on Sunday, putting the pressure for Saturday on the shoulders of Thibau Nys and Joris Nieuwenhuis. The latter skipped last weekend to get in some extra training, which might pay off on Saturday.

Once again, the main competition will come from Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal, where Eli Iserbyt and Michael Vanthourenhout will again lead the charge. The former leads the Superprestige standings by winning three of the four rounds, while European champion Vanthourenhout will likely be hoping to bounce back after a somewhat lesser period.

Laurens Sweeck finished second last Sunday in Dublin, meaning that he is still looking for his first victory of the season. Other men who will want to compete for a podium finish include Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck), Cameron Mason (Cyclocross Reds), Gerben Kuypers (Circuz-ReUz-Technord), Jens Adams (Lotto-X-Oats Athletes for Hope), Corné van Kessel (Deschacht-Hens-Maes), Lander Loockx (TDT-Unibet) and Toon Vandebosch (Crelan-Corendon).

Favorites men's Superprestige Boom, according to IDLProCycling.com

Top favorite: Eli Iserbyt (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal)
Outsiders: Thibau Nys and Joris Nieuwenhuis (Baloise Trek Lions)
Long shots: Laurens Sweeck (Corran-Corendon), Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal), Niels Vandeputte (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Cameron Mason (Cyclocross Reds)

TV Superprestige Boom 2023

You can follow the Superprestige race in Boom via Eurosport, which will be broadcasting from 1:30 p.m., covering both the men's and women's races. In Belgium, the race is also viewable on Proximus Pickx and Telenet Play Sports. IDLProCycling.com will also be on site to report on the race!