World champion Marianne Vos (DSB Bank-Nederland Bloeit) won her second World Cup race of the season in Zolder, Belgium. The 22-year-old Dutchwoman took the lead on the first lap and held on to take victory over US champion Katie Compton (Planet Bike) and Dutch champion Daphny Van Den Brand (ZZPR.nl).
Compton started slower than the two Dutchwomen but accelerated in the latter stages to pass Van Den Brand, but she never looked like catching the flying Vos.
With her second place, Compton increases her lead in the overall World Cup standings to 15 points over Van Den Brand (260 points to 245) after the Dutch Champion reduced it to 10 with her victory in Kalmthout last week. With her win this week and her second place last weekend, Vos has put herself within 40 points of Compton with two rounds remaining in Roubaix, France on January 17th and Hoogerheide, Netherlands on January 24th.
The competition should be between Compton and Van Den Brand at this late stage, but if either or both slip up then Vos could be a danger.
Result
1 Marianne Vos
2 Katie Compton
3 Daphny Van Den Brand
4 Hanka Kupfernagel
5 Sanne Van Paassen
6 Sanne Cant
7 Christel Ferrier-Bruneau
8 Caroline Mani
9 Lucie Chainel-Lefevre
10 Eva Lechner
11 Helen Wyman
…
13 Amy Dombroski
19 Nikki Harris
27 Gabby Day
34 Christine Vardaros
43 Vicki Thomas