Fem van Empel wins Flandriencross in Hamme

Dutch Fem Van Empel celebrates as she crosses the finish line to win the women elite race of the Flandriencross cyclocross cycling event stage 68 in X20 Badkamers Trofee (Image credit: Getty Images)

Fem van Empel of Team Jumbo-Visma won the 6th round of the X2O Badkamers Trofee in Hamme, beating Shirin van Anrooij into second place and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado in third, making for Van Empel's 13th victory of the season.

Van Empel attacked from the first lap, establishing a decisive gap that eventually saw her win by a margin of 1:15, making for an impressive double-victory for Jumbo-Visma as Wout van Aert seized victory in the men's race too.

Van Empel's main adversary, Puck Pieterse (Alpecin-Deceuninck), wasn't present, while Lucina Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) - previously overall series leader - finished off the podium in fourth place and so has given up her overall series lead to Van Empel.

"The feeling wasn't great yet, I was still a bit tired from the internship in Spain. Fortunately, it was enough to win," said in an interview with broadcasters after the race.

The next X2O Trofee event will be X2O Badkamers Trofee - Krawatencross on 12th February, following the World Championships next weekend.

Results powered by FirstCycling

Thank you for reading 5 articles in the past 30 days*

Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read any 5 articles for free in each 30-day period, this automatically resets

After your trial you will be billed £4.99 $7.99 €5.99 per month, cancel anytime. Or sign up for one year for just £49 $79 €59

Join now for unlimited access

Try your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

Peter Stuart has been editor of Cyclingnews since March 2022, overseeing editorial output across all of Cyclingnews' digital touchpoints.

Before joining Cyclingnews, Peter was the digital editor of Rouleur magazine. Starting life as a freelance feature writer, with bylines in The Times and The Telegraph, he first entered cycling journalism in 2012, joining Cyclist magazine as staff writer. Peter has a background as an international rower, representing Great Britain at Under-23 level and at the Junior Rowing World Championships.