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This Sunday, the Kempen gravel festival was on the agenda in Turnhout. In this round of the UCI Gravel World Series, both Daan Soete (8th) and Nicole Frain (10th) secured strong top-ten finishes. Aaron finished in a respectable 25th place, while Violette made a successful debut for the team.
A beautiful spring sun turned Bolero Turnhout Gravel into a high-speed race. In both the men's and women's categories, a large front group stayed together for a long time. Eventually, Danish rider Mads Würtz Schmidt managed to break away alongside Magnus Bak Klaris and Mathijs Loman. The 2015 U23 time trial world champion ultimately sprinted to victory. Daan competed in the peloton for 7th place and finished 8th. Aaron found himself in a second group halfway through the race and crossed the finish line in 25th place.
The women's race was pure chaos. Starting behind the men, they quickly began catching some of the stragglers. In the end, it was Geerike Schreurs who, despite facing setbacks, rode to victory. Nicole was caught behind a crash in the final and finished 10th, just 15 seconds behind the winner. Violette set her own pace and crossed the finish line less than half an hour later.
Atypical gravel race
Daan Soete: "The race started at a really fast pace. After an hour, we had an average speed of over 40 km/h. That made it very hectic, with stones flying everywhere. If the whole season is like this, the paint on the frames won’t last long (laughs). In that sense, it was an atypical gravel race: after one lap, there were still fifty of us together. Because of all the jostling, it felt more like a road race. I’m already looking forward to the upcoming races, which will be tougher and where everyone will find their place more quickly."
"I also noticed that I haven't fully regained my racing speed yet. I struggled particularly with short bursts of acceleration. My endurance is good, but with all the intervals, I could already feel my legs getting tired after one lap. Luckily, I managed to push through, but a podium finish was out of reach. I think this result was the best I could achieve today."
Aaron Van der Beken: "I felt better than in Santa Vall. Turnhout is, of course, a fast and flat course, so I knew what to expect. In the sandy section, a rider in front of me lost his line and caused me to crash. From that point, I had to chase. I managed to maintain my pace and catch up with some riders, but this wasn’t the result I was aiming for."
Nicole Frain: "It wasn’t quite the result I wanted, but it was a really tough course to make a big impact on the group. I tried to break away through the technical sections and singletrack, which I love, but it didn’t stick. Unfortunately, a crash on the singletrack (caused by a rider from the age groups) played a role in my final result, as it created a gap to the front four."
Violette Neza: "I’m really happy. It was an amazing experience—my first big race ever. In the beginning, my legs weren’t with me; I think they were still on the plane flying to Europe. But in the second lap, my legs finally woke up, and I was pushing strong. There was a crash, and I got caught up in it as well. My handlebar bent, and I fell on my arm, with some pain in my knee. But it’s not too bad. I had a lot of fun, and it was a great experience. I’m looking forward to the next races!"
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