In the last race of the EKZ CrossTour in Meilen, there are two races in one in the men's elite race. While the battle for the day's victory is being fought at the front, the podium places for the overall standings are being decided just behind the leading group. At first it was the German Sascha Weber who pushed hard at the front and made his ambitions clear. However, a defect then knocked him out of the decision, as he had to carry his bike to the next transition zone.

As a result, it is the two Belgians Quinten Hermans, Nicolas Cleppe and Frenchman Fabien Canal who dominate the race at the front. While Hermans was soon able to pull away a little, Dutchman David van der Poel was chasing hard at the back and rode into second place on the last lap. However, the Belgian and former U23 European champion Hermans was not to be denied victory in Meilen.

In the overall standings, everything remains the same at the top. Leader Marcel Wildhaber finished the race in tenth place, securing his second overall victory in the EKZ-CrossTour after last year's success. "It was tough, but of course I'm very pleased that it was enough," explains Wildhaber after the race. A stomach bug meant that Wildhaber had to take a forced break between Christmas and New Year. In the end, however, he was fit again in time to defend his top position. Behind Wildhaber is Simon Zahner from the local VC Meilen, who moved up to second place in the overall standings thanks to a seventh place in the last race. Nicola Rohrbach held this position before Meilen and finished third in the final standings. Three Swiss riders on the elite podium of the EKZ-CrossTour - never before in the four editions of the race series.

Jolanda Neff celebrates second stage win, Pavla Havlikova second overall victory

Christine Majerus finished in second place behind Jolanda Neff, with local heroine Sina Frei in third. However, the top three have no influence on the overall standings. The overall leader from the Czech Republic, Pavla Havlikova, defends her position with a sixth place in the final race and celebrates her second overall victory after the 2015/16 season. Like a year ago, Swiss champion Jasmin Egger-Achermann finished second overall. "Today I would have expected a place between ten and fifteen." Despite suffering from a cold, Egger-Achermann starts in Meilen and secures fourth place on the day thanks to a controlled and clean ride in the technical sections. The Swiss champion is also satisfied with second place in the overall standings: "That's what I was expecting and I'm very happy with it." The Italian Rebecca Gariboldi finished third in the overall women's standings.

Serial winners siblings Rouiller and Lars Sommer

The most successful riders at the fourth edition of the EKZ-CrossTour were siblings Loris and Mélissa Rouiller and Lars Sommer. Loris Rouiller (U19/Amateurs/Masters), Lars Sommer (Men U17) and Mélissa Rouiller (Women U17) each won five of the six races in the cyclo-cross series, meaning that they were all the overall winners before the final race in Meilen
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EKZ-CrossTour has established itself

At the end of the day, Christian Rocha, President of the EKZ-CrossTour, was also satisfied. "With the fourth edition of the CrossTour, we were now in a year of establishment. We once again had a pleasing number of participants, exciting races, many strong riders from abroad and, above all, great Swiss victories. We are definitely on the right track." The race in Bern is also a novelty, and the fifth edition of the EKZ CrossTour is also already being planned.

Individual and overall results EKZ-CrossTour
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