Nys and Van der Haar collaborated based on three words: "We helped each other today"

Halfway through the World Cup cyclo-cross in Gavere, it was clear that Thibau Nys and Lars van der Haar were fighting for a place on the podium. The two Baloise Trek Lions teammates needed only three words to understand each other, after which Nys finished in third place behind winner Mathieu van der Poel. 

Nys broke away from the rest in the early stages with Van der Poel and Vanthourenhout. The three were together for the first few laps until Van der Poel launched his decisive attack. From the background, Van der Haar suddenly arrived halfway through the race, joining Vanthourenhout and Nys.

At that point, Nys had a difficult moment; he confirmed with IDLProCycling.com afterward. "It felt like that at that moment," Nys replied when asked if he thought his podium spot might be wasted. "Lars also came very fast from behind, so I thought, I'm going to push him a few more times, so maybe he can still come second."

Van der Haar gives young Nys three words: "Think about yourself"

But Van der Haar told IDLProCycling.com immediately after the finish that the best was gone. "I hit my knee hard against a pole, which hurt significantly. I couldn't accelerate, but I noticed that, technically, I kept riding very well. I came back to Thibau. He thought I was faster. I quickly told Thibau to think about yourself, so we helped each other today."

So Nys was given the freedom by his experienced teammate to take his chance. "I rode my pace, and he could still accelerate afterward in the last laps. I think it is a deserved third place, and I liked that we could help each other a little bit," Van der Haar said of the team's performance.

Nys also saw that his Dutch teammate was defeated. "I thought he could have passed Michael. It took too much strength for me to ride in the lead, but I am very satisfied."

Text continues after the photo.

Thibau Nys (right) and teammate Lars van der Haar in the race.

Nys "very satisfied," Van der Haar with knee problems

Where Nys was mostly very enthusiastic about his performance, there were concerns for Van der Haar. "I hit my knee pretty hard, so it hurts quite a lot. So I'll have a good look at it later on. In the race, you have all that adrenaline, but now I'm starting to feel it seriously," he says with concern.

How different it was with his Flemish teammate. "This is great,' was Nys' first reaction afterward. 'I had a better day than in Zonhoven. I was very good. I had a few sections on the course that didn't suit me as much, but there were a few very good sections. It was hard for me to perform, but I'm satisfied with the feeling."

Nys enjoyed his course, Van der Haar also satisfied

"This is great in a real cyclo-cross race," continued a happy Nys. "Very satisfied, it's awesome. It's a pity I couldn't do my thing or display my qualities. Then, it could have been a little more exciting to get second place. But I was beaten by the best. I was sometimes half a lap at ease and then another half a lap over the limit. So it was a bit of yo-yo playing. But it was a very nice race, I enjoyed it."

Despite the knee problems, Van der Haar was also satisfied with his performance. "I've been feeling good about myself for weeks, but the competition is better. Maybe that age will also come up again on a course like today. I feel you have that toughness then for those tough races. Lately, I have noticed how many young guys are good right now. Maybe it's not the same guys every time, but there are many of them," the rider said.

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