Brand beats Alvarado after fierce duel in Diegem

Lucinda Brand takes the Telenet Superprestige race in Diegem. The Dutch champion defeated Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado after a fierce duel.

Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Fenix-Deceuninck) was best away in Diegem. The leader in the Telenet Superprestige standings invited her rivals out for a reconnaissance lap, but Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) had other plans. The Dutch champion soon took over the lead and immediately upped the tempo.

Not much later, a poor passage through the sandpit threw a spanner in the works, forcing her to fall behind Alvarado and Inge van der Heijden (Crelan-Corendon). The latter also made a mistake, but after a fall by Alvarado, we entered the second lap with three leaders.

On this lap, it was Brand who once again pushed ahead strongly. She took the necessary risks and forced her rivals onto the defensive. The one who suffered the consequences was Inge van der Heijden. For her part, Alvarado was unimpressed. On the contrary, the Dutch rider took over smoothly and answered several attacks from Brand.

Despite the surges at the front, Inge van der Heijden managed to keep her deficit limited. And even netter, midway through the race she managed to rejoin the leaders. However, her joy was short-lived. Alvarado attacked just before the sandpit, also putting pressure on Brand.

On the penultimate lap, the roles were reversed again. Brand went all out on the asphalt uphill stretches, gaining a few seconds on Alvarado. Entering the final lap, Alvarado was 12 seconds behind and it seemed that her spirit had been broken. The last lap was a mere formality. And thus Brand won her second Telenet Superprestige race of the season in Diegem ahead of Alvarado and Van der Heijden.