By Daan Hakkenberg
Ellen van Dijk herself almost misses the pinnacle of her career. She has been cycling like a blue rocket for almost 59 minutes and now the dozens of spectators are making so much noise that Van Dijk does not hear the directions from the side. “I thought, ‘Am I there yet? Or do I need a few laps?’ At one point I heard: “Two more.” Then I was really happy. Because I really couldn’t go any faster, started to swing and could hardly cycle straight on. It’s terrible pain. In the end I am very happy with the record, but I had hoped to be able to go a little faster on a very good day. But I was completely devastated.”