Wednesday, October 30, 2024 at 11:48 AM
The Netherlands cannot count on Ryan Kamp, Manon Bakker and Denise Betsema next weekend during the European Cyclo-Cross Championships (November 2-3) in Pontevedra, Spain. These riders have to miss out on the European title battle.
This is a big deal for national coach Gerben De Knegt. “Unfortunately, three riders have to miss this weekend. After a turbulent time, Ryan Kamp recently had a hard fall, from which he will continue to recover in the near future,” the former cyclo-cross rider indicates on the KNWU website.
Kamp was already a doubt for the European Championships, after he had a heavy crash at the start in the Superprestige of Ruddervoorde. “I have felt better, but in principle things are still going well considering the circumstances,” he said a few days ago, in conversation with CyclingFlits. “I felt stiff for a number of days, without being able to pinpoint any clear pain points.”
“However, we quickly knew that one of the main muscles in my back – which runs along the vertebra – was in any case severely bruised. That’s what I feel the most.” Kamp – who had a very turbulent start to his cross season due to the much-discussed kicking incident with Eli Iserbyt – wants to take the time to recover from his fall, so that he does not continue to struggle.
Betsema and Bakker will not be in action for the women. “Manon Bakker and Denise Betsema currently lack the form to be really competitive and are therefore letting this championship pass them by,” De Knegt indicates.