Brand takes European title after Schreiber disqualification: 'It's definitely the strangest one I've ever won'

Brand and her compatriot Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado were soundly defeated on Saturday in Zeddam by Schreiber, who has been on a roll all season and surprisingly claimed victory at the European Championships in a two-way sprint against Brand. It was a sprint of the dying swans, in which Schreiber briefly swung her bike to the left.

It turned out to be enough for the judges to crown the somewhat hampered Brand as champion and relegate Schreiber to a disappointing second place. Alvarado fell in the final lap and, with a sore left wrist, had to settle for third place. So in the end, after much deliberation, no one on the podium was truly happy.

After a long deliberation by the judges, Brand and Schreiber were called before the panel, and although neither woman would comment upon their return, it was clear that Brand had been declared the champion. She was immediately sent to the flash interview, where, with a look of some surprise on her face, she had to talk about her gold medal.

"It's a new title, but it's definitely the strangest one I've ever won," said Brand, her voice breaking and a lump in her throat. She clearly hadn't quite processed it all yet. “It was a tough race; Marie was very strong throughout the entire race and pushed us to the limit on the stairs. That might be why Ceylin made a mistake.”

"In the sprint, Marie started a little earlier than I did, so I tried to catch up from behind her to get alongside her. How it ended is up to the jury. I can't say much more about that. Every title is great, but this one does feel a little different, to be honest."