Felipe Orts (Ridley Racing Team) said that he will never forget his performance to finish third at the 2026 World Cup in Benidorm.
Orts won his eighth consecutive Spanish national cyclo-cross title last weekend but had not finished on a World Cup podium since December 2024.
He was left emotional following an impressive ride to finish behind Mathieu Van der Poel (Alpecin - Premier Tech) and Thibau Nys (Baloise Verzekeringen - Het Poetsbureau Lions).
“It was unbelievable for me,” said Orts, who performed a wheelie and waved to the crowd as he crossed the finish line.
“Everyone kept asking if I would be on the podium, and I said that of course I was going to try, but that it was very difficult with the best riders in the world being here.
“To be on the podium with Thibau and Mathieu, the truth is that it is incredible. I think we will all remember this day forever.”
Van der Poel was in formidable form as he rode clear from his rivals from the opening lap and won convincingly by 28 seconds.
Undeterred by his rivals, Orts gave his Spanish supporters a performance to remember and attacked from a large chasing group on the fifth of eight laps.
The move turned out perfectly for Orts as Belgian champion Nys joined him a lap later.
Nys offered to work with the Spaniard and the pair built an unassailable advantage over their podium rivals.
The Belgian pulled away on the final lap to finish second, and Orts held on to celebrate third.
“I attacked in the correct moment,” added Orts. “I opened a small gap and Thibau (Nys) rode really fast with me. We worked together and finally on the last lap I was absolutely on the limit.
“We understood each other well and we knew that the first thing was to open a gap and then play out the sprint.
“I knew that Thibau would be very strong in the last lap, so I'm happy with third place.”
Nys finished runner-up to extend his second place in the overall, just 20 points behind leader Van der Poel.
The pair will battle for the overall honours in the final two rounds at Maasmechelen and Hoogerheide next weekend.
The importance of a podium finish for Orts was not lost on Nys, who added: “It’s his (Orts’) home race. It was the perfect moment for me to turn the throttle open, and he (Orts) was right there in front of me.
“I thought it was nice to take him with me, so he could enjoy riding in front of his home crowd.”
Benidorm bid for the World Championships
Spanish cyclo-cross star Orts is also at the forefront of Benidorm’s bid to host the cyclo-cross World Championships in 2031.
Benidorm submitted its proposal for the event last month and they are expecting an announcement to be made in September.
The city was hosting its fourth cyclo-cross World Cup with a radically modified course, which included a new sandpit section and uphill start/finish on asphalt.
Orts said that his home nation needed to ‘take advantage of cyclo-cross' being an increasingly fashionable sport in the country.
He added: “The organisation is very good, they work a lot. The track, year by year, is better and of course it would be a good place for a World Championship.
“Everyone is watching over us this weekend in Spain, they only talk about cyclo-cross, and we have to take advantage of it. There are more and more fans.
Orts marked a memorable day on the bike by wearing helmet with a special design in dedication to his hometown, Villajoyosa, just a few kilometres away from Benidorm.
“It’s a really nice place," Orts explained, "and it's always on my mind, anyway.”
