Landing in the Netherlands, the Cannondale Cyclocross World Pro Cycling team will have three American riders on the start line for Saturday's men's and women's edition of GP Leuven: Curtis White, Katie Keogh, and Clara Honsinger.

"The last few months have been a roller coaster ride to say the least and our riders are hungry to race," said team manager Stu Thorne.

"That said, we are in quarantine and will miss the race in Neil. As soon as the quarantine is over, we will be ready for action."

"The first few races could be rough. In other words, none of the riders have the fitness or base to race. It may take a few races before things start to come together. There is no doubt that the races will be full on, and the Euros have been through many races. You have to race for fitness"

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The team has 17 events scheduled, a mix of C1, C2, and World Cup events, prior to the season-ending World Championships in Oostende, Belgium, on January 31. Sixteen of those races will be held in Belgium, while the World Cup will be held in January in Hulst, the Netherlands. The team has not yet decided if it will participate in the World Cup round in Tabor, Czech Republic, in late November.

Clara Honsinger, the newest member of the Cannondale Cyclocross World Team, is eager to show off her star-spangled jersey as the women's elite national champion, which she won last December in Lakewood, Washington.

"I feel it is really important to wear the Stars and Stripes jersey at the European races this fall and winter. But I want to show the European cyclocross audience that American women are dedicated to the sport and willing to cross the ocean to race at the highest level," Honsinger, who is still on the road this week from a trip to the Netherlands, told Cycling News

"I live in Oregon and unfortunately all the races were cancelled this year. However, I was able to run some local CX races in Colorado in September. The promoter went to great lengths to put on a safe event. After all, there is nothing like being on the starting line of a race to push yourself physically and technically.

Teammate Kaitie Keough participated in a local cyclocross race in Colorado in October.

"I'm looking forward to getting back to racing again. It was nice to be able to participate in a cyclocross race in my hometown. It's been a while and I'm really looking forward to it," said the 28-year-old veteran, who finished fifth at last year's US Nationals and finished the season 30th in the UCI rankings.

On the men's side, 25-year-old Curtis White leads the field, as three-time national champion Stephen Hyde has left the team after five seasons to join the new Steve Tilford Foundation Racing team. White has only competed twice in club races near his home town of Delanson, NY, and says he is ready to raise the bar from hard work away from competition.

"Things have changed quite a bit in the last few months. Initially I was concentrating on the World Cup and trying to stabilize my overall ranking. Now that the World Cup series is down to five races, I plan to incorporate more Superprestige and X20 Budokamers Trophy (formerly DVV Trophy) races.

"World Championships are always the goal, but this year has proven to be incredibly unpredictable," said White, the silver medalist at the 2019 US Cyclocross National Championships.

"I can't be 100% certain that there won't be any more changes to the schedule. All I can focus on is making the most of every opportunity I am given. My goals will not change. Only the schedule will change. This will give us more time to prepare and give our absolute best at the next championship we compete in."

In this year of the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, the primary goal for the athletes is health and safety. The athletes all praised the organizers of the local races they competed in the U.S. White said that the two events he competed in adopted a new format to reduce social distance, and it worked.

"One was a local race in Newtown, Connecticut, organized by CCAP (Connecticut Cycling Advancement Program), and the other was Nomad CX in Schenectady, N.Y. It was really special to reconnect with the local cycling community. It was really special to reconnect with the local cycling community. The sport wouldn't be what it is in America without these grassroots events, and it's important for us athletes to refocus on where we came from and why we chose this brutally beautiful sport."

All three athletes said they have had a very long off-season and are preparing for a good showing in Europe.

"There are many obstacles this season, and to be honest, there is still a lot of uncertainty around the race," Honsinger noted. 'But we are here to race hard, to drive around the tough Belgian courses.'

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