In Eijsden, Limburg, mountainbiker Tim Smeenge (KMC) today became the clear Dutch Champion mountainbike in the marathon discipline. In the final, he defeated reigning champion Hans Becking and Pascal Eenkhoorn (Lotto Dstny). Becking’s Belgian teammate Wout Alleman could not prevent Smeenge from taking home the red, white and blue jersey. In the final, he tried to bring Becking back to Smeenge, but Smeenge continued to increase his lead over the Buff duo.
Smeenge made his comeback today after an absence of three months, having been out of circulation for a long time with a complicated wrist and collarbone fracture. “I have been feeling very good for the past few weeks and was immediately in the race. With Pascal Eenkhoorn and Frits Biesterbos (BEAT), we rode away for a while in the beginning, but Hans Becking and Wout Alleman managed to catch up again. Tom Schellekens (Visma-Lease a bike) also managed to make the jump to the leading group. In the last part of the race I managed to create a gap and continued to increase my lead. It was fantastic to end the season on a positive note with this title,” said Smeenge.
Hans Becking crossed the finish line in second place and Pascal Eenkhoorn took the bronze. Teammates Teus Ruijter and Gerben Mos finished tenth and sixteenth and Rozanne Slik sprinted to fifth place behind winner Rosa van Doorn.
photo: George Deswijzen