Marianne Vos (NED) at Heusden-Zolder World Cup 2017 (Image credit: Tim de Waele/TDWSport.com)
Marianne Vos won the UCI C2 Parkcross in Maldegem on Wednesday. She defended her win from last year with an attack that saw her solo the last half of the elite women’s race. It was her first win of the 2017-18 UCI cyclo-cross season.
Vos took the win by a 30-second margin ahead of compatriot Annemarie Worst. Belgium's Laura Verdonschot was third.
Vos later spoke of her victory on her Instagram account saying, "It's most important to enjoy what you do. Nice day out at Maldegem. Thanks to my team, support crew and all of you for the lovely messages."
The cyclo-cross racing continues just days after the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Valkenburg where Belgium's Sanne Cant won her second consecutive title ahead of American Katie Compton and Lucinda Brand from the Netherlands.
Vos, a seven-time cyclo-cross world champion, placed 18th in Valkenburg at 3:43 behind Cant.
In Maldegem, Cant placed seventh over a minute behind Vos.
Cant, Vos, Worst, and Verdonschot, along with Maud Kaptheijns, Loes Sels and Katie Compton were the leading seven by the end of the second lap. Vos made a decisive attack that split the front group and left Cant 10 seconds back. As Vos gained time on chasers Compton, Kaptheijns, Worst and Verdonschot, Cant lost ground.
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Vos built her solo lead out to 20 seconds to the chase group with three laps to go, and 40 seconds ahead of Cant.
Vos crossed the line with her first victory of the cyclo-cross season and of 2018. Parkcross was Vos’ seventh race this season.
She finished fifth at the World Cup in Heusden-Zolder and fourth at the World Cup in Hoogerheide. She also raced C1-level events from the DVV trofee series Scheldecross, where she began her season, and placed 8th, and GP Sven Nys, where she placed 15th. She was 9th at the Superprestige in Diegem and 18th at the World Championships in Valkenburg on Sunday.
