Sunday's Koppenbergcross in Oudenaarde is the second round of the Bpost Bank Trofee series. For Sven Nys, it will be his final chance to win a race that he has won nine times. "A tenth victory would be nice."

Winner in 2001, from 2004 to 2010 and one last time in 2012. Nys has a special bond with the Koppenbergcross. "It is a race with a lot of atmosphere and of course history. That climb is a heroic place. For me personally the Koppenbergcross is a special race. I have dominated it for the past decade and that creates a bond," he tells Het Nieuwsblad.

Nys is in his last season as a professional rider. Sunday is the last chance for a tenth victory. "That gives the race an extra dimension. At least I feel fine. In recent weeks I have not always been on the podium but you can't read anything into that. I had to deal with bad luck, but was always in contention. Wout (Van Aert, ed.) is currently above everybody else."

How can Van Aert be beaten? "I will need a super day to win. But I see several contenders since it will be a dry edition. In good weather there are quite a lot of recovery time while a muddy descent is more of a balancing act. That suits me better. On the other hand, it is harder for the great favorite to dominate in dry weather. This creates opportunities."

In the Bpost Bank Trofee, Nys is fourth, 31 seconds behind leader Van Aert. "Frankly, I don't have that ranking on my mind," said Nys who can win the series for the tenth time. "I will certainly continue to fight for every second. And then in December, I will have to see if I can go full for the victory."

Nys has proved his form as he has just set a new record on his training course: 3.09. On Wednesday, he rode the course in the Lichtaart forest as he does every week. With coach Paul Van Den Bosch, Nys has done so since 2003 and it seems that there is still room for improvement at 39 years of age.

In the first year Nys set a time of 3'36 ", in 2012 he posted a time of 3'18 '' and in 2012 he broke all his previous records with 3'13''. This week Nys could improve his lap time after three years with a handsome 3'09 '', according to a report in Sportmagazine.

The veteran rider shared his performance on Twitter with pride and highlights the symbolic figures: "3:09! A time with many meanings," he tweeted.
 

The Cannibal is in top form. He also proved himself last Sunday by riding up the famous sand pits in Zonhoven. But whether that is enough for Nys to beat Van Aert in the Koppenbergcross is another question...