In 2022 the timing was a little strange due to rules of UCI which needs to be followed. It’s not allowed to organise a timed races when the track is not fully closed for traffic. Obviously this isn’t a big deal for swimming and also a marathon track is relatively easy to secure and hold back traffic with some signalmans. But for a bike race of over 180 km through Flanders Fields that’s very difficult to organise and mostly reserved for very big cycling events like Ghent – Wevelgem to name one. As a result the biking is not timed over the entire distance but only a shorter part of the race is closed for traffic and is timed. It’s understandable that safety comes first, but it’s still a pity that this has an impac on the end result if you are a very strong biker. 

Update 2023: In this year the timing for all full disciplines was taken into account, which is more fair. Marie-Claire had a great cycling day and finished the 180 km with 1000 altitude meters with an average just below 30 km/h. It gave here a nice advantage to start the marathon, which was good as she fell ill overnight. The marathon was a struggle and she had to vomit 3 times. Luckily the margin she created during cycling was big enough to win the 2023 edition.