Ranking of women under 23:
After more than a month, Viktória Chladoňová again presented herself in the World Cup in cyclocross and performed an excellent performance in Gaver, Belgium.
Although the 19-year-old Slovak had to start again from the bottom of the starting field, she gradually made her way to the front. Especially in the second half, she overtook her tired opponents and finally equaled her best result in the elite series.
Like in January in Benidorm, Spain, she took 10th place, finishing second in the under-23 category. Like at the 2025 Road Cycling World Championships, only the Frenchwoman Célia Geryová was better.
The women’s race was dominated by Lucinda Brandová from the Baloise Glowi Lions team. The unequivocal leader of the World Cup successfully attacked in the third of six rounds.
In the final one, she could indulge herself in celebratory gestures, and so she won “only” by 15 seconds ahead of the Frenchwoman Amandine Fouquenet, who left Puck Pieterse from the Netherlands behind by another four seconds.
Course of the race in Gavera
Chladoňová was behind Brandová by 1:47 minutes, while she lost up to 43 seconds in the opening circuit, in which she had difficulty getting ahead.
She stayed behind the top twenty for a long time, but unlike other competitors, she improved her performance. Her lap times improved, and after the fourth circuit, which she covered in 8:16 minutes, she moved up to fourteenth place.
In front of her were three competitors from the U23 category, as well as the Frenchwoman Héléne Clauzel, who rode alone on the 10th place and had a fairly promising lead.
VIDEO: Cut from the women’s race in Gavera 2025
However, the native of Soblahov constantly reduced it, and when she passed the finishing line for the penultimate time, the top 10 was already within reach.
She still had enough strength and finally recorded her best time in the final round – 8:11 minutes. Thanks to this, she fended off the opposition of her peer Amandine Muller and was able to enjoy an excellent result.
Compared to the race in Tábor, which took place on November 23, Chladoňová improved by eight places and beat, for example, the Dutchwoman Leonie Bentveldová, who dominated the U23 ranking in the Czech Republic.
Brandová claimed her sixth victory in the current year of the World Cup and is undefeated since the EC. Apart from her, only Aniek van Alphenová, who took advantage of Brand’s absence in Flamanville, has won.
