The Netherlands takes European gold in the Junior Team Time Trial Mixed Relay

From Heusden-Zolder to Hasselt, nine countries competed for gold in the Junior Team Time Trial Mixed Relay over a course of 52.3 km. The Netherlands rode into the history books and were crowned European champions. Germany and Norway took the other positions on the podium.

At 11:30, the three Norwegian men were the first to roll off the start podium first in the shadow of the Sport Vlaanderen Heusden-Zolder Velodrome Limburg. With a time of 33'52" at the changeover point after 28.3 km, they immediately set a sharp first benchmark. The final 24km of the time trial was completed by the three women. The Norwegian women rode with the same momentum of their male teammates, finishing the 52.3 km with a top time of 1:05'43".

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The Belgium team was quickly away as the sixth starter. The men clocked 33'16" at the changeover point, beating the Norwegian top time. For a long time it looked like the Belgian women would set a new record time, but on the last lap they had to concede 22 seconds to the Norwegians.

With a strong start to the race, the top favourites finally came into action. The Dutch men raced at cruising speed to the changeover zone and clocked a blistering time of 32'46". It was now up to the Dutch women to finish the job and that they did decisively. They crossed the finishing line in a time of 1:05'20" and thus could take over Norway’s place on the hot seat. Things got tense for a while when Germany came close to matching the Dutch top time, but ultimately in the final straight, the German women fell 12 seconds short. The Netherlands thus took its first European Junior title, with Germany and Norway having to settle for silver and bronze.