Passendale : 3 luxemburgish riders on start, 3 in the first: Nathalie Lamborelle wins, Christine Majerus makes 2nd and myself 6th place.

All three of us showed yesterday that luxemburgish cyclism consists not only in the Schleck brothers and Kim Kirchen!!

After arather quiet start, I made a first attack entering the small roads at half circuit, but didn’t insist as the bunch followed immediately. After the first part of the uphill, Christine attacked and as the bunch didn’t react and I was in a good position I countered and caught her after a few hundred meters. We collaborated immediately and went on steadily with an advance of around 35" after 2nd lap.

Behind us there were many attacks, but the first who joined us was, after 6 laps, Loes Sels from Vlaanderen Topsport, together with Fiona Dutrioux (Futuroscope). The last one wasn’t able to collaborate correctly, so our advance from over one minute to the bunch fell to less than 50".

At the end of lap 9 Fiona was dropped and just after Kimberly Boyl and Nathalie Lamborelle joined us. For two laps the collaboration was quite good, but in the third last lap people started looking at each other.

In this lap I was in leading position in the uphill and at the moment I took a bottle of coke, Loes attacked, Christine took her wheel, Nathalie and Kimberley followed and myself, as I had first to put the bottle on the bike, I couldn’t follow immediately. My moral was very bad then, but I struggled all alone behind the group of 4 during the last two and a half laps to keep the gap to aminimum which wasn’t easy with the windy conditions, when you had already been out for over 80km. Nevertheless I kept it going, but was joined by Lensy Debboudt in the last uphill. She incited me to work and as my aim wasn’t 5th or 6th place, but a minimum gap on the winner, I did all the work in the last km and she oversprinted me. The bunch arrived only 2'50" later, and only 45 of the 74 riders started saw the finish, so that I’m nevertheless satisfied of my race, (still able to compete with the best), and I’m confident for the nationals next weekend. Read please the fan post

Berchem, It was not my day:

The race-report from Berchem follow soon.