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Jackie Tyson

'Aggressive racing, fight for position' take US talents Abbygail Cole and Luke Johnson from back of start grid to podiums for EuroCrossAcademy in the Netherlands

Abbygail Cole, a 15-year-old from East Granby, Connecticut, rides muddy VAM Berg course in the Netherlands on her way to victory.

Teenagers Abbygail Cole and Luke Johnson experienced their very first European cyclocross races earlier this week, as part of the 12-rider group for 15- and 16-year-olds with 2025 EuroCrossAcademy (ECA), a US-based student-athlete development programme. With the new territory came surprises in pre-race routines, language barrier, start grid placements and race positioning.

Both riders acclimatised quickly after starts deep in the fields, new territory for the accomplished juniors, with Cole scoring back-to-back victories on the weekend while Johnson earned second place on Saturday. However, racing the first day in deep mud at VAM Berg and the next on a slippery, technical course like Spijkenisse, near Rotterdam, were not straightforward rides to the podium.

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