{"id":310025,"date":"2025-11-27T10:17:08","date_gmt":"2025-11-27T10:17:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/310025\/"},"modified":"2025-11-27T10:17:08","modified_gmt":"2025-11-27T10:17:08","slug":"other-riders-feel-a-bit-jealous-of-thibau-nys-bart-wellens-warns-of-rising-resentment-as-belgian-champion-dominates-cyclocross-headlines","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/310025\/","title":{"rendered":"“Other riders feel a bit jealous of Thibau Nys” \u2013 Bart Wellens warns of rising resentment as Belgian champion dominates cyclocross headlines"},"content":{"rendered":"


\nWellens believes the explanation is simple: Nys stands out, both on the bike and in the way he carries himself. From his bold kit choices and distinctive tattoos to the nostalgic tribute to his father Sven Nys<\/a> with that green helmet and orange glasses in Tabor, Nys has become one of the most recognisable figures in the sport. That profile \u2014 and the attention it brings \u2014 is not universally welcomed in the bunch.A rider who keeps cyclocross in the spotlight<\/p>\n

What others may consider showmanship, Wellens frames as crucial for the sport\u2019s long-term health. \u201cIt\u2019s up to the others to present themselves in the same way,\u201d he argued, noting that Nys and his camp understand perfectly how to keep him in the spotlight. He even pointed to how, after Sunday\u2019s race, the first four cyclocross stories on Sporza\u2019s site were all about Nys \u2014 precisely the kind of exposure riders dream of.<\/p>\n

And for Wellens, this is exactly why Nys is indispensable right now. \u201cI said before the season: it\u2019s riders like Nys who we need to keep the cross hot,\u201d he continued.<\/p>\n

The alternative, in his view, is a discipline dominated by low-profile winners who say little, do little, and struggle to capture public imagination. \u201cWhat do you write about? Someone like him \u2014 not a dry rider who turns up, wins, and then says or does nothing. That\u2019s no use to us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"thibaunys<\/p>\n

Nys is a former European champion in cyclocross<\/p>\n

Performance and personality \u2014 a rare combination<\/p>\n

Crucially, Wellens stressed that Nys backs up his image with elite performance. \u201cTo perform that well and then have that kind of attitude \u2014 it\u2019s incredibly impressive,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

For him, the blend of swagger, branding, and hard results is not arrogance but added value: the modern version of a rider who understands that professional sport extends beyond watts alone.<\/p>\n

As Nys continues to dominate the headlines \u2014 and the races \u2014 Wellens expects the jealousy to linger, perhaps even grow. But in his eyes, that reaction only underlines the power of Nys\u2019s presence within the sport. Cyclocross, he argues, needs characters, not just champions. And right now, Nys is firmly both.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Wellens believes the explanation is simple: Nys stands out, both on the bike and in the way…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":310026,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[445],"tags":[138565,49,48,635,80956,82,136416,121517],"class_list":{"0":"post-310025","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cycling","8":"tag-bart-wellens","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-cycling","12":"tag-cyclocross","13":"tag-sports","14":"tag-sven-nys","15":"tag-thibau-nys"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310025","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=310025"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/310025\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/310026"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=310025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=310025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=310025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}