A Shove, Disqualification, Concussion, and Crisis: All in a Day’s Work for One Rider at CX Worlds

It might be easier to list what didn’t happen to Marion Norbert Riberolle on Saturday at the elite women’s cyclocross world championships.

The Belgian ‘crosser was crashed, was concussed, and was disqualified in what must have been the most incident-packed afternoon of her career.

One day later, Riberolle was feeling beat-up and bad about a two-handed push on Kristýna Zemanová that sparked a chain of catastrophe that became as big a talking point as Lucinda Brand’s bulldozing victory.

“Everything is fine with my health, apart from the headache,” Riberolle wrote Sunday on social media.

“As for my disqualification, my action was not correct. I accept the jury’s decision, and I apologise to the other rider,” she wrote.

Riberolle sees red in race for rainbow jersey

So what the heck happened to Riberolle in the muddy fields of Hulst?

It all started to go south for the 27-year-old on lap 5 of 6.

Brand was already on course for the second rainbow jersey of her career, and Riberolle was battling for bronze in a tight chasing pack, a few turns back.

Cameras follow the chasers as they zoom down a bridge and into a fast left-hand bend. Riberolle and Zemanová go shoulder-to-shoulder, and then slide into a heap on a surface left greasy by a week of rain.

Riberolle jumps to her feet, but her first thought isn’t on the bike.

Instead, the Belgian champion launches a frustration-fuelled double-handed push at Zemanová that wouldn’t look out of place in a bar-room brawl.

Not long later, footage shows Riberolle lolling on the ground, clutching her head. According to Sporza, she had suffered a panic attack after experiencing a bout of stabbing chest pain.

But by this point, the time Riberolle was hemorrhaging was immaterial – race officials had already slapped her with a DQ for violent conduct.

And the story doesn’t end there.

One day later, Riberolle’s trade team Crelan Corendon issued the following update:

“After her crash at the World Championships, Marion sustained a concussion,” the team wrote.

“The medical examinations were reassuring. Apart from mild headaches, there are currently no further symptoms. Marion’s participation in the Exact Cross in Maldegem does not appear to be in jeopardy.”

A very brief history of ‘crossers getting cross.

It seems cyclocross inspires athletes to a type of racing rage that’s rarely seen on the road or MTB.

Whether it’s the blood-boiling intensity, close-quarters barging, or the thought of cleaning all the crap off of the bike afterward, elite cyclocross has seen beefs and brawls a-plenty.

Most recently, Jinse Peeters got the red mist and slapped at Mannon Bakker after the two tangled on a tight corner in the Exact Cross Maldegem. Not long before that, the now-retired Eli Iserbyt was banned for 3 races after he stomped on a rival’s bike in a fit of rage in Beringen.

Riberolle will be hoping for a drama-free day on Wednesday when she plans to return to racing.