Preview before the last cyclo-cross World Cup race in Hoogerheide
The World Cup circus will end this year in Hoogerheide, in the Netherlands, where last year the Worlds were held. Unlike last year, when the overall title had been decided before the last races, this year it's still wide open. Let's see what's the current situation. Let's see the ladies first.
Due to last weekends unfortunate cramps, Katherine Compton was unable to race thus she now has 260 points. Marianne Vos is not much ahead, having 265 points, she now has to pay the price for missing the first race of the season. With 285 points, Daphny Van Den Brand seems is most likely to win the overall title, however, if Vos were to win the race, Van Den Brand needs to finish at least at 3rd place to win. As both of them are Dutch, the home soil in this case won't be a decisive factor. It will be quite a battle.
The situation is similar with the men: two serious contestants and a narrow difference in points. Niels Albert had been in the lead throughout the entire season, and after Zolder, when Stybar only finished 6th, I thought he was going to win the overall World Cup title.
But then came the Belgian National Championships and he was pushed off his bike, broke a rib and that, understandably, made his job much-much harder to win the title. He finished only 8th in Roubaix, so now he's 14 points behind Stybar
Stybar had a bad race too during the season, in Zolder, he finished only 6th but his win in Roubaix rewarded him with the overall leader's white jersey.
So let's see the scenarios:
- Stybar wins: he wins the World Cup title, regardless of Albert's result
- Albert wins, Stybar 2nd: Stybar wins the overall title
- Albert wins, Stybar 3rd: Albert wins the overall title by only one point
- Albert wins, Stybar 4th or worse: Albert wins the overall title
In two days we'll know which scenario came through. What do YOU think, who's going to win the overall World Cup title?
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