Great Britain’s Ian Field finished 24th at Cross Vegas, as the 2016 Telenet UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup started at a new-look course in Las Vegas, USA on Wednesday.
Twenty-one-year-old Belgian world champion Wout van Aert won the opening race in some style, completing the 10 laps in 1:06:53 with Field three minutes and eight seconds behind.
Solid start to the season with 24th @CrossVegas couldn't quite hold onto my top 20 which I held for most of the race... Onwards and upwards
— Ian Field (@FieldyCX) September 22, 2016
The 2016 UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup series got underway with CrossVegas, a night-time event and the first of the two USA-hosted rounds.
Van Aert (Crelan-Vastgoedservice Continental Team) looked to be out of the running when he fell on the fourth lap of the course, after being in the leading group from the start of the race.
Despite landing awkwardly on his hip and dropping back into around 20th place, van Aert powered his way back through the field.
And after closing down leader Michael Vanthourenhout with five laps to go, vanAert moved away from the rest of the race; 19 seconds ahead with two laps to go and 34 seconds as he entered the final lap; an unassailable lead.
Vanthourenhout was rewarded with a second place finish after his brave solo attempt early on in the race; Laurens Sweeck (Era Real Estate – Circus) took third, as Belgian riders filled the top seven places in the standings.
Field picked off several riders throughout the race and finished just 10 seconds outside of the top 20.
The elite women's race was won by the Netherlands' Sophie de Boer following a thrilling three-way sprint with Czech rider Katerina Nash and Katherine Compton of the USA.
.@ssophiedeboer outsprinting @KaterinaNash and @KatieFnCompton to take the win in @CrossVegas for the first round of the #TelenetUCICXWC pic.twitter.com/BESxUaoHkF
— UCI Cyclocross (@UCI_CX) September 22, 2016
The Telenet UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup continues in the USA on Saturday with a new addition to the calendar, Jingle Cross in Iowa City.
