Niels Albert about Eli Iserbyt: “As so often happens at a championship, he was not at the appointment”

Tuesday, November 7, 2023 at 3:21 PM

Eli Iserbyt did not play a major role at the European Cyclocross Championships in Pontchâteu last Sunday. Beforehand he was considered one of the favorites for the title, but in the end he had to settle for sixth place. “As so often happens at a championship, Eli Iserbyt was not at the appointment,” Niels Albert suggests in his column The last news.

“One time European champion, that’s it for him,” says Albert, who recalls the 2020 European Championship. Earlier that year, Iserbyt achieved his best provisional ranking at a Belgian Championship among the pros: second. He also won silver at the 2019 European Championships, while he won bronze at the World Championships in both 2022 and 2023. Now a medal was not an option for the 25-year-old rider. “You would think: Pontchâteu, twisting, turning, a bit technical, that’s a tour he should be able to do. He had a puncture, yes, but there was no way to return.”

Albert also commented on a statement by Sven Vanthourenhout. The Belgian national coach said prior to the European Championships that the importance of a solid road program is becoming increasingly important for cyclo-cross riders. “Road racing will become increasingly important for a motocross rider,” Albert also thinks. “Iserbyt, Vanthourenhout and Sweeck have to do something about this if they want to be able to ride one or two kilometers per hour faster in cross-country in the future.”