By Hannah Blackwell
Zoe Backstedt has claimed she was shocked to become Wales’ latest world champion – even though not many others in cycling felt the same.
Backstedt was crowned the junior women’s cyclo-cross world champion in Fayetteville, Arkansas on Saturday.
The 17-year-old was hot favourite going into the race having dominated the junior ranks this year in the discipline, even winning her first elite women’s race earlier in the season against some of the top-ranked women in the world.
The attack that gave Zoe Backstedt a gap early on.
At the end of Lap 2️⃣ and she has a 20s gap on a chasing Bentveld #Fayetteville2022 pic.twitter.com/GVXyASHkNY
— UCI Cyclocross (@UCI_CX) January 29, 2022
The younger of Pontyclun’s famous cycling sisters – bronze medal world road race winner Elynor is three years older – Zoe admitted she had some concerns that a dose of Covid that forced her to miss the British National Championships in Crawley as well as the World Cup at the end of last year might have drained her power.
But she attacked on the first lap on the steep climb which proved to be a catalyst in the other two races of the day.
“If I’m honest I’m just shocked. I’ve had a pretty good season on the road and in cross this year, and I was unlucky with the World Cup and with Nationals to have Covid,” said Backstedt.
“I missed those, but I think ultimately it made me fight back stronger, and I’m here today because I put that extra little bit of fire into my race.”
Backstedt showed her intent on lap one, taking on the steep climb of the course and establishing a 17-second gap within the first lap.
Lap two saw Leonie Bentveld (The Netherlands) make her move, the Dutch-rider being tipped to be Backstedt’s number one rival in the race, and it looked as if she would make headway.
However, lap three would prove to show the opposite as Backstedt increased her lead again to 28 seconds.
With one lap to go, Backstedt led from Bentveld in second and Lauren Molengraaf (The Netherlands) in third. Ella Maclean-Howell crossed the line in sixth with Federica Venturelli (Italy) and Lilou Fabegue (France), just 14 seconds behind Molengraaf.
🗣 “To be honest I am just shocked”
Here’s what @backstedt_zoe said at the finish line ⬇️ after dominating the Women Junior race 🥇 today. #Fayetteville2022 pic.twitter.com/YrPgm7akFS
— UCI Cyclocross (@UCI_CX) January 29, 2022
Backstedt would eventually turn on to the final straight with time to spare, punching the air and taking the World Championship win by 32 seconds to Bentveld.
She added: “I was speaking to my coach before the race, and I asked, ‘Do you think I should attack up the first climb?’
“And he said, ‘if your legs are feeling good, then go for it.’ I came into it, the little kick in second place.
“And then I just opened the taps and went as hard as I could up there, and I got to the top and I had more people on the sides, saying you’ve got five seconds, you’ve got ten seconds whatever the gap was, and I just thought, I’m going to keep going.
“When I have fun, I do well.
“The whole course, I absolutely loved it. I came here yesterday and the descent was a lot slippier yesterday than it was today, so I came into that and was not as confident as I could be.
“But I went out this morning and it was frozen – it was perfect conditions.”
Backstedt’s GB teammate Ella Maclean-Howell finished one minute and six seconds behind Backstedt in fourth overall, just nine seconds off third-placed Molengraaf.
Results
1. Zoe Backstedt (Great Britain) 41:16
2. Leonie Bentveld (The Netherlands) +32
3. Lauren Molengraaf The Netherlands) +57
4. Ella Maclean-Howell (Great Britain) +1:06