For those few readers who follow cross, the European season wrapped up this past weekend. Jonathan Page had two very good final races (12th and 7th respectively) to finish ranked #10 in the final UCI standings. It's the highest ranking an American has even attained, and shows that he can indeed ride and thrive with the best of the best.
It was Page's best year by far and he realized a few firsts: First UCI win, first UCI podium finish (3rd), a 10th place finish at Worlds (highest for a US Elite rider ever), and too many top 20's to count (Ok, I'm just being lazy at this point). The only downside to the entire season was his food poisoning episode in early December that derailed his chances at a 4th straight US championship, and his punctured foot injury in late December that kept him out of two important races and hobbled him a bit for about 2 weeks. I think he would have placed even better at Worlds had he not gotten injured and sacrificed both fitness and start position for the WC's. But the bigger picture is that he proved a dedicated US rider could mix it up with Europes best in their own backyard. Next season should be even better.