Zolder is holding worlds this year, so we get a nice little dress rehearsal, which is bringing back a name from a few years ago. Yes Ladies and Gentlemen...it's LARS BOOM! Boom is returning after years exclusively on the road, but will only ride this race, and worlds, presumably. Boom is the world champion of 2008, and his last big CX win was the Dutch championships in 2012. He won in Zolder in 2010, and is hoping for a top ten at this, his comeback race.
Some Old photos and movies of me. Happy to be racing tomorrow and be back in Zolder. Good memories. #Christmas https://t.co/Y3tASjbNrg
— Lars Boom (@lars_boom) December 25, 2015
Map:
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/5854165/Picture-2015-09-16-om-20.17.52.0.jpg)
There are a few tweaks - I think some trees were cut down - but all in all it's a very similar course to last year.
Standings:
| 1. | Wout Van Aert | 290 |
| 2. | Sven Nys | 261 |
| 3. | Lars van der Haar | 255 |
| 4. | Kevin Pauwels | 226 |
| 5. | Laurens Sweeck | 183 |
Wout Van Aert's hold on the standings looks sound for this race. He's 29 points ahead of his nearest rival.
| 1. | Eva Lechner | 179 |
| 2. | Sanne Cant | 162 |
| 3. | Nikki Harris | 140 |
| 4. | Katherine Compton | 123 |
| 5. | Ellen Van Loy | 110 |
It's Lechner vs Cant for this one, unless Harris dominates the next few races.
Conor's Picks to Win:
While I'd love to say Boom (just think of that baby blue Astana jersey, all muddy), I think that 8th is as high as he can go. Lars Van der Haar is my pick for this one. He loves this course, he's won the last two races on the circuit. Van Aert, Van der Poel or Nys are all also possible winners. On the women's side, Nikki Harris and Eva Lechner are my picks.
TV:
Een and Telenet are showing the race live, as well as the UCI stream at the top of this post, but British Eurosport are also showing it on television.