Report/Result: World Gravel Championships

Marianne Vos and Mathieu Van der Poel perfectly mastered the variety and intensity of challenges offered by the 2024 Bolero UCI Gravel World Championships in Flanders, Belgium, this weekend. Both Dutch athletes add another UCI World title to their already vast collections from different disciplines.

Report/Result: World Gravel Championships
Marianne Vos and Mathieu Van der Poel perfectly mastered the variety and intensity of challenges offered by the 2024 Bolero UCI Gravel World Championships in Flanders, Belgium, this weekend. Both Dutch athletes add another UCI World title to their already vast collections from different disciplines.

Vos is the third Women Elite UCI World Champion for gravel after France’s Pauline Ferrand-Prévot (2022) and Poland’s Katarzyna Niewiadoma (2023). She claimed her maiden rainbow jersey 18 years ago, with the first of her eight for cyclo-cross (2006, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2022). She also took three UCI World titles in the road race (2006, 2012, 2013) and two more on the track (2008, 2011).

As for Van der Poel, already bronze medallist in the inaugural UCI Gravel Worlds two years ago, he follows in the wheel tracks of Belgium’s Gianni Vermeersch (2022) and Slovenia’s Matej Mohorič (2023) to take his 11th rainbow jersey, the 8th in the Elite ranks, after triumphs in cyclo-cross (2015, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024) and on the road (2023). This is the second successive year he takes titles in two different disciplines.

A total of 23 titles of UCI Gravel World Champion were awarded across the weekend with a record participation: 2,613 riders registered in the different men’s and women’s age groups. See full results.

Vos’ new conquest
After her latest victory, 14-time UCI World Champion Marianne Vos said: “I didn’t think about the previous 13 to be honest. Of course, it [gravel] is something fairly new but it’s a World Championships so you try to do your best.”

The Dutch athlete tamed gravel after a thrilling battle with other decorated cyclists, most notably Belgium’s Lotte Kopecky (+1’’), who claimed silver in a two-woman sprint a week after winning the Women Elite road race at the UCI Road World Championships for the second year in a row. After 135km, the Netherlands’ Lorena Wiebes rounded out the podium (+3’57’’) ahead of her countrywoman Puck Pieterse (+4’09’’) in a race that opened massive gaps.

“There was a pretty big group but then on a harder part Lotte set a really high pace and then we were the four of us, with Lorena Wiebes and [Italy’s] Soraya Paladin, but then with another hard part we were left with two,” Vos explained. “It was nice to be in the front with Lotte but you know it’s gonna be hard as well. She won last week so I knew she’s in good shape. It was great to race together here, especially with those crowds.”

Van der Poel’s masterclass
In the Men Elite race, Van der Poel rode aggressively, as usual, quickly opening the 182km race through the Forests of Brabant. Most of the attention was focused on him but he eventually managed to slip away alongside Belgium’s Florian Vermeersch with 40km to go. The duo worked well together to distance their rivals until Van der Poel went solo into the last 13km.

Vermeersch took the silver medal (+1’03’’) ahead of a five-man chase group from which Belgium’s Quinten Hermans made the most of his power to claim the final podium spot (+2’47’’).

“It’s super nice to add another rainbow to the collection, in another discipline,” Van der Poel rejoiced. “I wanted to make the race as hard as possible because I knew with a big group it could be a difficult situation for me, so I tried to put everybody on the limit. When Florian Vermeersch went, we had good cooperation. It was a super hard race, but I enjoyed it and I’m, of course, super happy with the title.”

ELITE WOMEN
1. Mariane Vos
2. Lotte Kopecky
3. Lorena Wiebes

BRITS
39. Amelia Mitchell
60. Ruth Astle
72. Maddy Nutt
79. Caroline Livsey
83. Kate Macleod
86. Hayley Simmonds
96. Annie Fisher
103. Dani Shrosbree

ELITE MEN
1. Mathieu van der Poel
2. Florian Vermeersch
3. Quinten Hermans

BRITS
6. Connor Swift
40. Matt Holmes
48. Zak Coleman
58. Tom Martin
68. Cameron Mason
74. Adam Howell
75. Will Truelove
104. Dylan Humber-Kelly
106. James Swadling
143. Thomas Armstrong
184. Conor McGoldrick
204. Joe Laverick
217. Toby Perry
226. Giles Drake

Other notable results include
Women 40-44: Joanne Thom 4th
Women 45-49: Helen Jackson 5th, Elise Sherwell 7th

Results: https://www.uci.org/race-hub/2024-uci-gravel-world-championships/3zI21Z5UFaRJDvNFwmkqVI