The 19-year-old is on course for an impressive U23 campaign
Three World Cup races, three straight U23 wins for Thibau Nys. On Sunday, the 19-year-old Baloise Trek Lion edged out Jente Michels by one second to win the men’s U23 race in Tabor. After mixing in with the elites in Waterloo and Fayetteville, taking fifth in both races, he finally got to cross the line first and stand atop a podium as the fastest U23 rider.
“It’s always a special feeling to come back to Tabor,” Nys said after the race. “It’s always one of the races I look forward to the most during summer. So taking my first Under-23 World Cup win over there feels really great. The shape is where it needs to be. And I think after a really good USA trip and the World Cups in the elite category, I think I confirmed my shape.”
Thibau Nys crossing the line in Tabor.
Nys controlled the race until the last lap, when he struggled to get re-clipped into his pedals and lost ground to Michels. He had to attack hard to edge out his Belgian compatriot. The race gave him good experience and a confidence-building win as he sets on his U23 racing campaign. Nys more than held his own among the elites during the US block of racing, but he’s hoping to collect U23 accolades this season, starting with European Championships in Namur on Nov. 5.
“It’s really promising for the next few weeks and for European Championships,” Nys said. “I’m also really happy to finally get a nice training week ahead after all those traveling days. It’s really hard to find the rhythm again after a few weeks of plane after plane and jet lag and all those things. I’m happy I’m back also, but it was all worth it.”
Lars van der Haar on the hunt in Tabor.
In the elite men’s race in Tabor, Lars van der Haar took second just five seconds behind Eli Iserbyt. Van der Haar was the only rider able to gamely chase Iserbyt, who attacked on the sixth of eight laps. And though the defending European Champion came up just short of a win, he was happy with his effort and what it may foreshadow for the rest of the season.
“This weekend, I was really close in Tabor. I think I went a little bit too late,” Van der Haar said. “But I really think my form is growing and I hope I will get some good results in the future. And definitely with the Europeans coming in Namur, that is still a huge goal for me.”
Other than his form, there’s another reason why Van der Haar is in such a good mood this year.
“It’s been a good start of the season, which was a little bit unexpected because of the birth of our daughter,” Van der Haar said. “It’s going a lot better than expected.”
Ward Huybs racing in Beringen.
Twenty-year-old Ward Huybs spent two straight weekends racing in Slovakia in C2 races — the Grand Prix Dohnany and the Grand Prix Topolcianky. Across four total starts, he won twice and took second twice. The experience was eventful, especially for a young rider. In Dohany, Huybs raced against cyclocross legend Zdenek Stybar and beat him in the Saturday race and lost by just three seconds on Sunday. In Topolcianky, he was able to end the trip on a high note, edging out fellow 20-year-old Belgian rider Victor Van de Putte by three seconds after losing to him by eight seconds the day before.
“I was very happy that I could finish my weekend and my adventure in Slovakia with a win,” Huybs said. “Now we can go back home and back racing in Belgium. I hope it will be even better. We will see what will come.”
