Throughout her career, Vos has reached the podium at the Dutch Cyclocross Championships 13 times. However, the seven-time national champion couldn’t manage that today. Early in the race, the rankings became clear. The bad weather conditions of the past days created a challenging course for the riders, with many muddy sections that forced them to get off their bikes. Pieterse quickly took the lead from the start and never relinquished it. For a long time, it seemed that Vos would secure the bronze behind Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, until Denise Betsema overtook the 37-year-old in the final lap.

“It was really tough today,” Vos said afterward. “Initially, I tried to close the gap to the front. When Puck got a real lead, it was pretty clear who would win. My pace dropped at the end too much. Then I was overtaken, and it ended up being fourth place for me.”

Despite this, Vos enjoyed herself in Oisterwijk. “It was a very nice race. It was tough, but I really had fun as well. I’ll take that with me into the coming weeks. This was another great race to add to the list", Vos concluded. Next week, the Team Visma | Lease a Bike rider will be back in action. On Sunday, January 19, Vos will compete in the World Cup race in Benidorm, Spain.