At the cyclocross World Championships in Dubendorf, 17-year-old van Anrooij took home rainbow stripes
At the CX World Championships in Switzerland today, the first race on the program was also a historic one. As the U19 Women Junior category stood at the start line, it was the first time junior women have had a chance to claim a rainbow jersey, previously they were grouped into U23. Dutch rider Shirin van Anrooij came home with the inaugural Women Junior rainbow jersey and adds a coveted “World Champion” title to her palmarès.
Belga Photo by David Stockman
This is her second big title of year, she won Junior Dutch National Champion last month.
“It feels awesome,” van Anrooij said. “The race went pretty well. I had a head start and I just went all out from first lap. I got a gap and tried to increased the gap on each lap. It worked out really well.”
Belga Photo by David Stockman
Outside of the championship competitions, van Anrooij raced in the elite category all season and consistently placed top 10. Her best World Cup finish was seventh last weekend at Hoogerheide.
Van Anrooij said the pressure of potentially walking away with a World Champion title made her nervous, but in a good way.
“I had my nerves under control. I was nervous but I think that had a positive impact for the day and I’m just really happy,” she said. Next season, van Anrooij will wear the Telenet-Baloise jersey.
Belga Photo by David Stockman
