Brand holds off Casasola in Tábor
Sunday 23 November 2025
Lucinda Brand has claimed the opening round in Tábor. She had to fight deep into the finale against a strong Casasola and Van der Heijden. In the end, Brand used her experience to control the closing moments and secured the victory on the line.
In the opening laps, it was mainly Lucinda Brand (Baloise Glowi Lions) setting the pace. Together with Van der Heijden (Crelan–Corendon), Bentveld (Pauwels Sauzen – Altez Industriebouw Cycling Team), Van Alphen (Seven Racing) and Zemanová (Czech Republic), she completed the first lap at the front.
In the second lap, Brand briefly opened up a small gap, a deliberate move to prepare for a bike change. The frozen ground in Tábor was rock-hard, while the sun slowly turned the top layer slippery. By the end of lap two, Casasola (Crelan–Corendon) had moved into the leading group at the expense of Van Alphen. She was able to follow Brand’s pace comfortably, and the two began to set the rhythm together.
For European champion Van der Heijden, the pace seemed a touch too high at the end of the third lap, but that impression proved wrong. As they headed into the penultimate lap, it was actually Van der Heijden who accelerated. She didn’t manage to get away, as all three riders were clearly evenly matched.
(Read more below the photo.)
The difference was only made in the final lap. Brand launched several accelerations, and each time Van der Heijden had to let a small gap open before fighting her way back. In the deep finale, however, she finally had to let go.
It was then Casasola who still had a burst of speed left and attacked after the barriers. Brand dug deep to stay on the Italian’s wheel and then took over again, but she couldn’t shake off Casasola, at least not until the very last metres. When Brand increased the pace one final time, she created the decisive gap.
The Dutch rider entered the finishing straight with a clear advantage, and Casasola was no longer able to contest the sprint for first place. European champion Van der Heijden finished third.
