Groenendaal attacked during the first lap and was chased by defending cyclo-cross world champion Mario De Clercq who was followed by Groenendaal's Rabobank teammate Sven Nys. Nys would not cooperate in the chase of his commercial teammate and as a result De Clercq never caught Groenendaal enabling Groenendaal to become World Champion.
The cyclo-cross race saw Groenendaal being attacked by De Clercq, who was defending his title.  Nys, Groenendaal's teammate, did not help in the chase, allowing De Clercq to never catch Groenendaal, leading to Groenendaal becoming World Champion.