Pieterse does the double with enthralling Hoogerheide win
It was a truly thrilling finale of the elite women's World Cup at Hoogerheide, Netherlands, the home of the Grand Prix Adrie van der Poel. The win eventually went to Puck Pieterse with a late move in the final lap, meaning the Dutch rider does the double this weekend after Saturday's return to the top step at Maasmechelen.
Throughout the race, there were at least half a dozen riders duking it out for glory in the absence of Lucinda Brand and Ceylin Del Carmen Alvarado, with the season's revelation Amandine Fouquenet ever-present, along with Kristýna Zemanová, Sara Casasola, and a Zoe Bäckstedt who is finding a rich vein of form just in time for next weekend's World Championships.
Pieterse had tried to go clear multiple times, but Fouquenet was a very sticky rival, as was Zemanová, and Pieterse's ride was not without mistakes. However, the Fenix-Premier Tech rider finally ripped clear as Fouquenet's lights seemed to dim about half a lap from the finish, just as Pieterse went on the attack. She dug deep for the last few minutes to ensure she stayed solo, and stay solo she did. Zemanová charged up to the line in second, and Fouquenet just held on to third ahead of a speeding Bäckstedt.
[race_result id=17171 stage_id=0 count=5 gc=0 year=2026]
