History was made today in Louisville, Kentucky at the 2013 UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships when four world champions  were crowned for the first time outside of Europe in the event's 63-year history. The noisy and happy crowd, estimated to be close to 10,000 strong, didn't let snow, freezing conditions or flooding deter their love of the sport, they cheered loudly all the racers.

 In the Elite Men's race, veteran Sven Nys of Belgium took the second world title  of his illustrious career. His teammate Klaas Vantornout was second and Lars van der Haar, of the Netherlands, was third.

There was plenty of cleaning to be done.

Fans from all over the world came to Louisville.

Dirty and clean!

And they're ready to go!

Sven Nys (Belgium), Elite Men 1st place
“The key for me was waiting for the second part of the race where I am normally the strongest. You
saw that all season. For me it was, ‘’try to stay calm, don’t make any mistakes, and wait until Mourey
was making some mistakes.”
“It is true [I said I would never race world championships again], and this day before the race I felt I
was getting a little nervous. I thought ‘damn, why am I doing this?’ It is so stressful, costs a lot of
energy, but in the end when you win and you have this jersey, you say, ‘this is why I am doing it.’
The crowd and family at home, I felt before the race that I got the respect from all of the U.S. fans and I
felt myself really calm. That is what I needed to win this race.”

Future World Champion, Sven Nys

Team USA had a great showing!

The Belgium's congratulate Sven on his win.

In the Junior and Under 23 Men's races, the Netherlands was the victor, with Mathieu van der Poel - son of legend Adri van der Poel - winning the Junior race ahead of teammate Martijn Budding.  Mike Teunissen made his move in the final lap to win the Men Under-23 title ahead of Belgian duo Wietse Bosmans and Wout van Aert.

Mathieu van der Poel (Netherlands), Men Juniors, 1st place
"I felt good from l the beginning and the snow was definitely good for me because it was more
technical and that is always good for me.”
“The first world championship is always more special, because last year in Koksijde, there was really a
battle for it, and now I just had time to celebrate and I knew when I entered the last round that it was
for me. Last year I just need to give it all through the last round to win it, so this year is different for
me.”

Sven Nys soon to be World Champion

Classic cross conditions

Media craziness

Kentucky mud! Made for some great racing!

UCI Cyclo-cross World Championships, Louisville, Kentucky 2013

Marianne Vos, of the Netherlands won her her first consecutive title in the Elite Women's race. American Katie Compton was second and Lucie Chainel-Lefevre of France was third.

Katie Compton on her way to a Silver Medal

Georgia Guold looking strong

World Champion Marianne VosMarianne.

 Vos (Netherlands), Elite Women, 1st place
“The plan was to do a good race, and of course I didn’t expect to get such a big gap from the first lap
on. It is America, of course Katie had some struggles in the beginning and it made the gap possible for
me in the first lap. I had to get the feel of the course on the first lap and I didn’t feel controlled, but
after that I took the lead and tried to make my own pace and keep concentrating until the end. Of
course I saw my advantage grow and that keeps you motivated.”
“I have to say the Americans are really cool and were cheering for me too. Getting the world
championship is really an amazing feeling, and it is different because it is in America and it is the first
time it is overseas, so that makes it special. In the end, it is the same race with the same racers, and for
me the pressure gets higher every year because people expect me to win.”

The Elite Womens Podium :Silver Medalist Katie Compton, Gold Medalist Marianne Vos and Bronze Medalist Lucie Chainel-Lefevre

Marianne Vos winning Gold!