Thibau Nys rarely dares to enjoy himself due to tricky puzzle of sacrifices, races, training and so on

Nys had a good start and quickly took the lead but couldn't extend it at that point. "In the first laps, I got some space, but I still needed to find my rhythm. So it was wise not to go full throttle right away. I then slid along with the other guys, which allowed me to get into the race quite easily."

A crucial moment in the race followed: the crash and subsequent chain problems of Eli Iserbyt. The Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal rider fell back significantly because of it. "Eli’s crash was the moment to push through, and then I noticed that my technique and legs started to find their rhythm. Things loosened up a bit. After that, it was just a matter of keeping up the pace."

Nys faced some resistance from Laurens Sweeck. The sand specialist even put Nys under considerable pressure on a sandy section. However, the eventual winner did not panic and dropped Sweeck shortly afterward. "I struggled in his wheel. I had a bad run going through the sand and eventually thought I’ll just take over and do my thing. Then I was able to do my own thing and create some distance, which was great."

"It was simply a matter of sprinting up all those climbs and not making any mistakes," Nys said. "It’s definitely a race where you have to stay focused the entire time. I was only confident when I went down the last descent. My back was very tired towards the end," making it clear that it was no given for Nys. "The first two laps, I didn’t have the best legs, but I gradually started to come through physically. In the last laps, I finally felt good."

Nys struck right after the European Championships in his new champion's jersey, but that didn’t make the win particularly more special, he said. "Every victory is important to me. Not so much because it’s the first in this jersey. Winning just means a lot. This is why we train every day, go to bed early, and eat what we need to eat. It’s what we make all the sacrifices for," Nys said.

"Everything has to keep falling into place, but it comes down to the details," he continued. "I didn’t have a day like I had in Overijse today, but I was still able to win because of the way the race unfolded. I did train quite hard this week and was maybe short that one percent. I hope to have that one percent back by next week. But it’s always a puzzle, especially with taking rest."

"Full of confidence and yet terrified" is how Nys describes his feeling when he returns for a chat with Het Nieuwsblad after the victory ceremony in the mixed zone. In doing so, he quotes Mike Tyson, the boxing legend. "I remain cautious, mainly because I notice how difficult it is to keep the right balance in the cyclo-cross season. On the one hand, you want to feel very refreshed for a race; on the other hand, you must put in enough hours and train intensively. Even though I'm getting better at dealing with it, my body struggles more than the average cyclist."

Leading up to Lokeren, Nys trained a little more because he had little training work in his legs the two weekends before. Only twelve hours a week. "Of course, your body gets very sharp, and you can go deep for an hour. But you can't keep doing that, or it will affect your fitness. We are still so early in the season. It is dangerous to say that I have taken a big step forward. For me, these are not doubts. But I do have my feet on the ground. I'm not going to start dreaming. And does that mean uncertainty? Maybe. But that's not a bad thing."