Belgium, Belgium, Belgium, Belgium, Belgium, Belgium … aaaaaaand Belgium.
That’s the way it went on Sunday as Niels Albert led the Belgian team to first through seventh at the UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships in Koksijde.
Albert shot away from the gun and raced from the front thereafter. He briefly had defending champion Zdenek Stybar for company, but the Czech’s heart clearly wasn’t in the contest and he was never a factor from that point on.
And neither was anyone else. The entire Belgian team assembled behind Albert, but they were squabbling over the crumbs. He built a lead of nearly a minute as the chase remade itself in various configurations before Rob Peeters escaped to take sole possession of second. Kevin Pauwels slotted into third.
And Sven Nys, who fenced with Pauwels for a while as the two pursued the invincible Albert, finally cracked and wound up the caboose in the Belgian train.
Meanwhile, the locomotive told Belgian TV he had “a very good day.”
• Photos from the elite races
“The start was perfect. The legs were very, very good,” Albert said. “I knew it was everything or nothing. Today it was everything. I’m very happy now.
“When you are riding alone you can choose your own road in the sand. And you can have a little recuperation in the sand. So it was very good for me.”
Top American on the day was Ryan Trebon, 18th at more than four minutes behind.
Katie Compton was the top American in the elite women’s race — but, alas, she was not the top woman. That honor went to defending champion Marianne Vos, who continued her dominance of the sport. Daphny Van den Brand took the silver and Sanne Cant the bronze. Compton had to settle for what must have been a disappointing fifth, behind Sanne Van Paassen.