Lucinda Brand has put a remarkable end to her impressive series in Maasmechelen. For the first time in 63 (!) races, the Dutch woman was not on the podium. Brand eventually crossed the line in tenth, but there was no panic afterwards.
The cross in Belgian Limburg did not start dramatically for Brand. She started well, but saw her match derailed early on. In the technical passages after the start she got boxed in, lost positions and suddenly had to come from far away. A situation in which the usually dominant Brand rarely finds himself.
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Stuck in the peloton
“The start wasn’t that bad for me,” Brand said afterwards at WielerFlits. “But in the next corners I got stuck and was pushed back. I couldn’t find the spaces.” It ensured that she could not lose her power on a course that allowed few mistakes.
When Brand started driving her normal lap times later in the race, the damage had already been done. “When I started driving better, the gap was already there,” he said matter-of-factly. It was no longer possible to advance, no matter how hard she tried.
Don’t panic towards the World Cup
Despite the striking result, Brand remains remarkably cool with a view to next week’s World Cup. “This doesn’t mean anything,” she emphasized. “It is difficult to look at next week now, because a lot also depends on the weather conditions.”
And that her podium series now ends? Brand sees this mainly as a side issue. “It would have been nice and funny if I could have broken Van der Poel’s record, but it is not the most important thing.” An off day, maybe at the right time, or not. That will become clear next week.
