Written by Llotyhy of Hog Bay CT
  
  Every season all World Tour managers and enthusiasts look forward to one week, a special week, the Clash of Nations. This seven race event brings the World Tour teams across all the continents for one of the two prestigious prizes a nation can win, the other being the overall World Tour.
  
   CoN Delhi
  
  The first race of the CoN is one for the climbers. Traditionally, this has usually meant a Dutch dominant display, but this year the picture was entirely different. Quite surprisingly Maks Jastrzebski from Poland dropped his competitors on the famous Devidhura section of the final climb and reached Nainital Lake solo. Athony Dabe from Bermuda finished second, with Jim Pierre from the USA scoring a third place. The 'big' countries disappointed, with Norway on sixth place somewhat limiting their losses compared to the others.
  
  1. Maks Jastrzebski
  2. Anthony Dabe
  3. Jim Pierre
  
   CoN Beijing
  
  One day later it was up to the sprinters to show their worth. In the last few seasons it was usually Spain or Norway that came out on top in these races and this time was no different, with surprise captain Atle Sveen winning CoN Beijing on his very first international appearance. The mass sprint in front of The Great Hall of the People at Tiananmen Square was won by a wheel length in front of Wit Bruaene from Belgium and Kurt Stemme from Germany.
  
  1. Atle Sveen
  2. Wit Bruaene
  3. Kurt Stemme
  
   CoN Washington City TT
  
  The least predictable race of the week is the Time Trial through Washington City. In this discipline no nation has been able to claim more than three victories, in twenty-five events. This season, it was Janis Macela from the Czech Republic who clocked the best time when passing the finish line. Young Colombian prospect Foncho Reto put the second best time on the boards, with Florian Everaerts

taking home another podium place for Belgium.
  
  1. Janis macela
  2. Foncho Reto
  3. Florian Everaerts
  
   CoN Sydney
  
  Sydney is the decor of the fourth race in as many days. You have to stand in awe at the logistical achievement the organization manages to make every time. This hilly race is where Belgium is especially strong, with five victories in the last twelve editions. This time, however, Norway took another win when Henrik Bekken crossed the line solo in front of the Sydney Opera House. A handful of seconds later, Max Falco from the USA netted an excellent second place, in front of Adrien Durand from France. Meanwhile, the Netherlands finished on the tenth position in as many days, effectively ending their hopes on reclaiming the title.
  
  1. Henrik bekken
  2. Max Falco
  3. Adrien Durand
  
   CoN Paris
  
  The fifth event of the week is the cobble race through northern France. After winning the race last year, Even Erlandsen once again proved too strong for the opposition, scoring another 200 points for Norway. Rodolfo Gomez saved some honour for Spain, while Timo de Ruijter finally put the Netherlands on the podium.
  
  1. Even Erlandsen
  2. Rodolfo Gomez
  3. Timo de Ruijter
  
   CoN Rio de Janeiro
  
  Climbing time once again, this time in Rio de Janeiro. As said before, this is usually the favourite terrain of the Dutch and this time they didn't made me look like an idiot. Alfons van Steensel put on a dominant display, beating Eloi Lage from Portugal and Richard Erty from France on the final climb. Norway finished on seventh place, securing the final classification by increasing their lead over

Poland to 210 points, ten more than the Polish would have been able to close on the final day.
  
  1. Alfons van Steensel
  2. Eloi Lage
  3. Richard Erty
  
   CoN Cape Town
  
  The final day of the Clash of Nations is for the sprinters. Wim Lowik wrapped up the week with the fifth World Tour victory of his career. Behind the Dutchman, Norwegian Bjørn Sandvik finished on second place, with Albin Dziedzic completing the podium for Poland. Wit Bruaene missed out on the podium, but scored enough points for Belgium to stay in front of the Netherlands in the final standings.
  
  1. Wim Lowik
  2. Bjorn Sandvik
  3. Albin Dziedzic
  
  
  Final CoN standings
  
  1. Norway 1010
  2. Poland 770
  3. Belgium 650
  4. Netherlands 580
  5. Denmark 500
  
  
  With all that out of the way it's time to make up the balance. Norway won their second Clash of Nations in a row and their third in total. Nations that surprised us positively were Poland, who scored an excellent second place and Burundi, who finished eleventh in their first Clash of Nations. Just one look at their rider roster will tell you how massively impressive that is. On the negative side of the equation we can find Spain, former winner, who failed to impress with an eighth position, despite having by far the most riders to choose from. South Africa, number seven in both the World Tour and the Clash of Nations last season did even worse though, failing to score a single point so far in the season. Next week, the World Tour spectacle continues with a sprint race for Division A and a time trial for Divisions B and C. Be sure to stay tuned and follow every update.