Visma-Lease a Bike rider soles to victory as Brand and Alvarado recover from crashes to finish on podium Van Empel celebrates a second win in as many years in Herentals(Image credit: Getty Images)World Champion Fem van Empel (Visma-Lease a Bike) won the X20 Badkamers Trofee race in Herentals benefitting from the mistakes of others to win the race a second year running Van Empel's win comes after a period of rest and training as she gears up not only to defend her world title, but also for a full season on the road for Visma-Lease a Bike. "It was superb, yeah. I worked very hard the last weeks and to win here in Herentals is super," Van Empel said in the TV interview after the finish. "The feelings were good today. It's always hard work here...I knew I had to put pressure on the rest of them. And I knew I had to put pressure on on the climb." The course in Herentals is challenging and technical, but Van Empel was able to use her bike-handling skills to gain an advantage over her rivals.  "If you can be first into the descents you can pick your own line. It was a good day for me, I didn't make any mistakes," she added. Early on, fighting through a course covered in claggy mud, the race's three favourites broke clear of the rest of the field. World Champion Fem van Empel, Ceylin Alvarado and Lucinda Brand showed their class, with some resistance from Annemarie Worst. The four stayed together until Brand put in a strong acceleration on lap three of five, initially distancing all of her companions before Van Empel reeled her in. Just behind, Alvarado had an incident in the pits, crashing and unseating her chain, seeing a seemingly insurmountable gap open up in front of her. As Worst steadily closed down the leading duo, Brand fell awkwardly on a technical, muddy climb, leaving Van Empel alone in the lead, five seconds clear of Worst with Alvarado chasing alongside Brand. During the final lap, Brand and Alvarado caught a battling Worst as they pursued the World Champion, who was stretching out her lead. The pair continued a strong pace, giving Worst some trouble in staying in touch. Van Empel stayed strong to take a comfortable win in Herentals, repeating her victory from 2023. 19 seconds later, Brand out-sprinted Alvarado and Worst to take the runner-up spot in a Dutch 1-2-3-4. The latest race content, interviews, features, reviews and expert buying guides, direct to your inbox! Fem van Empel has won the fourth manche of the X2O Badkamers Trofee the 22-year-old rider from Team Visma | Lease a Bike reached the finish line solo after getting away from her competitors on the penultimate lap Van Empel took her sixth win of the cyclo-cross season Van Empel immediately showed the aspirations she had come to Herentals with The reigning European champion went up the famous Skiberg first and only saw Lucinda Brand Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado and Annemarie Worst following in her Van Empel distanced herself from her competitors after which she was able to ride unthreatened to the finish so then it's nice when you see results right away" it was key to keep the pressure on all the time It was important to enter the descent first who has just finished a training camp on the road will be back in action tomorrow at the World Cup in Namur Subscribe yourself for the Team Visma | Lease a Bike newsletter and receive previews for races Be one of the first to try our new activity feed His victories across all five monuments and two world titles made him one of the superstars of the 1950s and 1960s Rik Van Looy — the first rider to win all five of cycling’s monuments — died overnight in Belgium after a long illness Nicknamed the “Emperor of Herentals,” Van Looy’s dominance in the one-days and fierce competitive edge made him one of Belgium’s most celebrated icons He retired in 1970 after a long, successful 17-year career that saw him overlap with the rising force of Eddy Merckx “Rik’s death is very unfortunate I was aware that he had not been doing well for a while,” Merckx told Gazet van Antwerpen on Wednesday “He is one of the best Belgian riders ever He was a great champion and a great opponent His willpower and his will to win are things that will always stay with me.” including working as a paper boy on an old to become one of the elite men’s peloton’s superstars during the 1950s and 1960s winner of multiple Monuments and GT stages R.I.P. Rik pic.twitter.com/aizxdbiwRz — Domestique (@Domestique___) December 18, 2024 he claimed more than 360 pro wins across track and road highlighted by two road world titles in 1960 and 1961 His career, which also included a heavy Six-Day racing campaign, spanned the post-war era and continued into the inevitable rise of Merckx, perhaps the only Belgian rider to outshine Van Looy’s palmarès It was his dominance in one-day racing that set him apart His victories across all five monuments — Milan-San Remo and Il Lombardia — saw him the first to join one of elite men’s racing’s most elite clubs Only two others — Merckx and Roger De Vlaeminck — have equalled the monument sweep winning Paris-Roubaix three times and Tour of Flanders twice He also won other big one-day races of his era including twice at Paris-Tours and three times at Gent-Wevelgem — Cycling Statistics (@StatsOnCycling) December 18, 2024 Van Looy never won the Tour de France or a grand tour but his strong sprint saw him win stages in all three grand tours He did finish third twice in the Vuelta a España he ranks sixth on the all-time list of men’s riders who won stages in all three grand tours he later emerged as a mentor to younger riders and served as an ambassador to cycling brands He is survived by two children and several grandchildren What’s it like to be an American cyclist living in France Watch to get professional road cyclist Joe Dombrowski’s view She might be behind last year’s pace but Fem van Empel now has a six-pack of 2024-2025 season victories the 2024-2025 X2O Badkamers Trofee resumed with Saturday’s fourth of eight rounds in Herentals and the world champion cracked the other Dutch riders vying for the day’s flowers Saturday’s runner-up Lucinda Brand has a 4:40 gap at the top of the table The top Canadian was Katja Verkerk in 33rd Lokeren round victor Lucinda Brand was over two minutes ahead of Sara Casasola at the top of the classification Van Empel—who triumphed last season in Herentals—and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado won the other two rounds Rochette and Verkerk made up the Canadian contingent Van Empel seized the hole shot and led into the first left-hand turn with van Empel and Alvarado ahead of Brand and Annemarie Worst took the lead and finished the first 3.3-km lap in 8:56 Worst worked hard to make sure she was part of the quartet on Lap 2 of 5 and van Empel’s calming of the pace ensured this Van Empel and Brand hopped on fresh machines but neither Cant nor anyone else could join the foursome van Empel changed bikes at the start of Lap 3 she crashed leaving and had to put her chain back on With Brand and van Empel beginning to lap riders ahead Worst was 12 seconds back at the line and Alvarado was +0:27 Brand and van Empel skirmished while Worst toiled to ensure a podium Van Empel went to the front just before Worst tagged along Just as Alvarado began to loom in the background crossing the line nine seconds before Worst and 23 seconds clear of Brand and Alvarado With van Empel trying to stay out of trouble at the pointy end of the race the podium battle hotted up on the bell lap had to scramble to match Brand and Alvarado The next round is the GP Sven Nys on New Year’s Day in Baal Get the digital edition of Canadian Cycling Magazine Δdocument.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Herentals Queens have taken a significant stride towards qualifying for the COSAFA semi-finals of the CAF Women's Champions League qualifiers following a 1-0 win against Green Buffaloes on Saturday. The decisive goal was scored by Maudy Mafuruse, marking her second goal of the competition. With this result, the Zimbabwean team temporarily sit at the top of the group with six points. However, their place in the next round is not yet secured, as three teams, including University of Western Cape (UWC) and Green Buffaloes, could still finish with six points. After suffering a defeat in their first match against Green Buffaloes, University of Western Cape bounced back with a 3-0 victory over FC Ongos Ladies. The goals were scored by Fikile Magama (21'), Sibulele Holweni (31'), and Bongeka Gamede, who converted a direct free-kick in the 57th minute. The top two teams from each group advance to the semi-finals. The semifinals are scheduled for 22 August, with the final set for 24 August. Green Buffaloes 0 – 1 Herentals QueensGoal: Maudy Mafuruse 61’ (Herentals Queens)Player of the Match: Tumbare Egness (Herentals Queens, Zimbabwe) University of Western Cape 3 – 0 FC Ongos LadiesGoals: Holweni 21', Magama 31', Gamede 57' (UWC)Player of the Match: Bongeka Gamede (University of Western Cape, South Africa) THE Division One Northern Region Soccer League (NRSL) encounter pitting Scottland Football Club (FC) and Herentals Under 20 played at Rufaro Stadium Friday afternoon displayed the former’s determination to get promotion into the premier league both teams are owned by Zanu PF legislators had promised vehicles for the Scottland players if they won against Herentals Under 20 The lavish incentive buoyed the title chasing Scottland whose charges made their intentions very clear from the first whistle as they invaded the Herentals box Scottland thought they had scored in the 29th minute when Allan Gahadzikwa’s effort was ruled offside much to the frustration of their supporters After halftime Scottland continued from where they left in the first stanza and were duly rewarded as Cleopas Dube opened the scoring The goal appeared to have demoralised Herentals who later succumbed to Leroy Mavhunga’s goal after he capitalised on the defensive mix up to send ‘The Students’ trailing 0-2 Scottland winger King Nadolo acknowledged that his team showed up in the second half “I am happy with the performance in the second half The first half was good but after the break it was exceptional,” said Nadolo This victory brings Scottland closer to promotion as they are expected to be awarded three points Monday from an abandoned match against Karoi United With this advantage over MWOS and the promise of vehicles from their owner Sakupwanya Nadolo said they approached the game with pressure on themselves “At first we had that pressure but as the game progressed we calmed down and we had to get back to our basics We told ourselves to keep doing what we were doing let’s not put ourselves under any pressure,” said Nadolo Meanwhile MWOS FC beat Norton Community FC 4-2 at Ngoni Stadium to keep its hopes of clinching the NRSL alive and storm into the premier league New Zimbabwe.com Tweets by NewZimbabweCom NewZimbabwe.com – The Zimbabwe News You Trust is Zimbabwe’s leading online newspaper and published by New Zimbabwe Media Ltd The platform brings you the latest breaking News Diaspora and gives you everything you’ve come to expect and love Our Forums are vibrant and gives everyone a chance to be heard tablet smart phone or on our App its quick easy and free access all the news you love NewZimbabwe.com is updated continually with the latest news to help you feed your addiction with stories & photos from Zimbabwe and many more Final lap surge enough for the Belgian to beat Pim Ronhaar into second Although the 31-year-old appeared to be the strongest for much of the race, it was a tactical battle, influenced by the slippy conditions underfoot. Vanthourenhout had studied the key sections of what is still a relatively new cyclocross race in detail, and put that to his advantage.  "It was a really nice day. I enjoyed the race. I could feel I was the strongest and I put everything into the final lap. I knew I had to go full gas but it was a really nice victory," Vanthourenhout said after the finish. "The last time up the skiberg I knew it was my moment. From the top to the bottom was just technical sections and downhill. So if I stay on the front in the first position on the top it's difficult to lose the race." Following his second December victory, Vanthourenhout is looking to continue his momentum into the following part of the cyclocross calendar, starting with the World Cup in Namur on Sunday. "First I need to recover from today. Tomorrow is one of my favourite races in Namur so I'm looking forward to it." "I'm very happy with my season so far. The Christmas period is very busy so I hope to have good legs in this part of the season," Vanthourenhout added. With the muddy Herentals course cut up after a weekend of racing preceding the elite men, the start was to be key for the 2024 Herentals round of the X20 Badkamers Trofee. It was Toon Aerts who made the best of the early running, accelerating away to take a significant lead on the first lap and taking bonus seconds in the overall series competition by crossing the line first after lap one. In lap two, Eli Iserbyt was pushing on to eat into Aerts' advantage, but hit his shoulder on the side-barrier heading round a right bend. Aerts was caught and passed by both Vanthourenhout and Sweeck, who had distanced him by the end of the second lap, as had a pursuing Ronhaar. Aerts appeared to be paying for his early efforts. Vanthourenhout and Sweeck were later joined at the front by Ronhaar and Niels Vandeputte, with a group of five not far behind. Ronhaar pushed on through a hilly section to distance his Belgian companions and was seven seconds ahead moving into the second-half of the race. Vanthourenhout joined Ronhaar at the front of the race, with Sweeck taking some time to make his way back to form a leading three for the race's finale. The three were locked together riding through the bell to signify the final lap, with Iserbyt, Vandeputte and Lars van der Haar half a minute behind. Vanthourenhout stretched things out in the early stages of the last lap and looked the strongest of the trio. His pace was too much for Sweeck and Ronhaar, particularly taking the advantage on the crucial, steep Skiberg. The Belgian stretched clear, with Ronhaar pursuing. Vanthourenhout powered on to take victory for the first time in Herentals, with Ronhaar second and Sweeck third. Herentals Queens’ quest for CAF Champions League COSAFA Qualifiers glory was on Thursday ended by Botswana’s Gaborone United Ladies who beat them 1-0 in the semi-finals The Female Students played a goalless first half which saw them missing a few chances which they regretted at the end of the match Gaborone United Ladies had Yebo Modise to thank for her 82 minutes goal which made the difference henceforth propelling them to the final where they will play South Africa’s University of Western Cape who crushed Young Buffaloes from Eswatini 6-0 Herentals were marking their debut at the CAF Champions League COSAFA Qualifiers tournament becoming the second Zimbabwean team to play in the prestigious women’s club competition after Black Rhinos Queens who represented the country in 2021 NewZimbabwe.com – The Zimbabwe News You Trust is Zimbabwe’s leading online newspaper and published by New Zimbabwe Media Ltd. The platform brings you the latest breaking News, Business, Showbiz, Sports, Diaspora and gives you everything you’ve come to expect and love. Our Forums are vibrant and gives everyone a chance to be heard. On your computer, tablet smart phone or on our App its quick, easy and free access all the news you love. NewZimbabwe.com is updated continually with the latest news to help you feed your addiction with stories & photos from Zimbabwe and many more! DYNAMOS registered a rare victory against bogey side Herentals 2-1 at Rufaro Stadium A second half brace by Donald Mudadi was enough for Dynamos to secure its first victory against Herentals since 2021 who provided both goals for the Harare giants Ziocha added impetus to Dynamos’ attack after replacing injured Valentine Kadonzvo on the brink of half time The attacking midfielder was a menace to the Herentals defence and probably delivered a brilliant pass to Mudadi who slotted the ball into the nets in the 66th minute Ziocha delivered another assist to Mudadi in 86th minute to complete his brace before Herentals pulled one back two minutes later log leaders Simba Bhora were held to a nill all draw Ngezi Platinum Stars at Baobab stadium while FC Platinum ended its four match winless with a 1-0 win over Highlanders at Mandava Stadium Green Fuel had a fruitful trip to Nyamhunga as they managed a 1-0 away win over ZPC Kariba Bikita Minerals vs Manica Diamonds (Sakubva Stadium) Chicken Inn vs Chegutu Pirates ( Luveve Stadium) We are excited to announce plans to invest over €30 million into our Herentals bakery factory, where some of Belgian’s beloved biscuits — Prince, TUC and PiM’s — are made. The new installations should be operational early 2024 and will enable the site to transform into a more modern, flexible and competitive factory, while increasing the production capacity. With this investment, we reaffirm our commitment in the bakery expertise of the factory. The investment of more than €30 million will enable the deployment of new technologies and will increase the production capacity of the Herentals bakery plant to serve the group's growth ambition in the European biscuit market. The objective is not only an upgrade and expansion of the current production capacity, but also a focus on increasing process expertise, safety and quality. “This significant investment will continue the modernizing of the production installations in our Herentals facility, and create a highly efficient and robust supply infrastructure for our iconic biscuits such as Prince, Tuc and PiM’s," said Bart De Geest, Plant Director Mondelez Herentals. "In combination with the development of our people expertise, this operation will enable the plant to develop its competitiveness, and prepares the ground for future growth of the plant.” Investment in machinery with focus on the plant’s core production lines The investment will include the installation of a new production line for TUC crackers, additional to the two existing cracker lines. This new line will create an additional +6,500 tons capacity for TUC, available to support up to +40% future growth. At the same time, a complete new production hall for the Prince biscuit will be installed and become operational early 2024. This new facility will produce chocolate cream filling with the latest technology for the popular Prince biscuit. This significant improvement in production equipment fits into the plant's focus on the development of its major 'core' lines Prince and TUC. Alongside these investments, the iconic PiM's line will be upgraded with a new cake baking unit and an upgrade of the chocolate process. The new PiM’s oven will be one of the first ones within the company’s supply chain network in Europe to make the transition from gas to electrical energy, supporting our commitment to reduce carbon emissions in our manufacturing processes. For Bastogne, new packaging equipment will be installed to create new sales opportunities. The plant will also implement new IT systems for the management of the warehouse and production system to further secure and improve production efficiency. "With our combined expertise in biscuits and chocolate manufacturing, Herentals is one of the largest production facilities of Mondelēz International in Europe," remarks Bart De Geest. "Thanks to this commitment in, we will be able to respond to the growing market demand and consolidate the plants importance within the group." Herentals Queens will become the second club from Zimbabwe, and first since 2021, to compete in the CAF Women’s Champions League | COSAFA Qualifier when they travel to Blantyre, Malawi for the event from August 15-24. Black Rhinos Queens made the final of the inaugural regional championship three years ago, but missed out on qualification to the continental finals when they were beaten by South African side Mamelodi Sundowns in the decider. Herentals Queens will hope to go one better this time round as they debut at this stage but come into the competition with form and confidence following their victory in the national championship. It will be no easy task though, they open their campaign against Namibia side Ongos FC on August 15, also the tournament opener, before a clash with 2022 champions Green Buffaloes two days later from Zambia and then University of the Western Cape of South Africa on August 19. Only the top two teams in the pool advance to the semifinals, and only the winning club will go to the African finals. “It’s a tough group, but I believe we are also tough and they’re also talking about us wherever they are. We know we have the aptitude to maneuver and bring home positive results,” Herentals Queens manager Shylet Chikonyora told the Standard Sport. “Our biggest challenge is the game against UWC, which is a good thing that it’s coming right at the end after we have played the other two teams. But, challenging this game might seem doesn’t mean that we are going to drop our guard. We respect UWC as a technically gifted side, but once we cross the whitewash, it will be a war zone.” Chikonyora adds the team will be well-prepared for the regional championship. “We leave for Malawi on August 13 in the absence of any regional engagements we are confident in the preparations that we have put up since we started the league. We have met tough oppositions, and the league authorities have also assisted in arranging games against Select sides, which has all come in handy for the girls, and believe more games are still going to be arranged,” added Chikonyora. “After playing against the select side, we had inquiries from people advising us to add a few exciting girls into our squad, but I doubt that we will be making any changes to the list that we submitted for these games. We will bring the trophy home that’s our target.” One of the key players for the side will be striker Maud Mafuruse, who is confident they can deliver on their promise to lift the trophy. “What I have learnt over the years is that experience also means responsibility, so looking at our team we have a number of raw players who are yet to play beyond Zimbabwe,” Mafuruse was quoted by The Herald. “I am very happy that we will be playing at such a stage, it is a privilege to be one of the few people to ever get an opportunity to represent your club and the nation at such levels. “It will be our role as seniors who have international experience to lead the team; I know I am expected to do a lot. Because I am not vocal, I will have to let my feet do the talking. “I have scored for the Mighty Warriors before, and I understand how it feels up there, my hope is that I will bang goals for my club, or at least create and assist others.” Two-time regional and continental champions Mamelodi Sundowns will be absent from the competition as they qualify for CAF Women’s Champions League automatically as holders. That may open the door for Queens. “The absence of Sundowns should work to our advantage, not that we are underestimating any team, but mentally it is weighing to know you are to face such a big name,” Mafuruse said. “We are looking forward to a top two finish and right now we are using our local games as preparations. “When we were crowned as league champions last season, we knew we had to expect these games so as a player, you also take that time to prepare and motivate yourself mentally and physically.” ZIMBABWE Women Super League reigning champions Herentals Queens left the country on Tuesday for Malawi where they are set to compete in the CAF Champions League – COSAFA Qualifiers The Students are representing Zimbabwe in the prestigious CAF women’s club competition Eight teams are competing for a ticket to the CAF Champions League Quarterfinals which are scheduled to be played later this year Commenting ahead of their departure at Robert Mugabe International Airport Herentals Queens coach Simba Dedza said his team is motivated to deliver good results “We have done everything in terms of preparations and we are happy with the team I can say the morale is high and everyone is motivated “We want to assure you that we are going there to come back with the trophy,” said Dedza he could not rule out the fact that his side is one of the underdogs at the tournament where they are marking their debut so it’s not going to be an easy tournament “We are aware of the big task that is lying ahead but still we have to fight,” added Dedza Herentals kick off their campaign in Group A with Namibia’s FC Ongos before playing Zambia’s Green Buffaloes and the University of Western Cape respectively ZIMBABWE’s representatives in the Women’s CAF Champions League – COSAFA Qualifiers kicked off their campaign with a 3-1 win over Namibia’s Ongos FC at Mpira Stadium The Students were put in front by Maud Mafurusa who scored in 20 minutes before Egness Tumbare doubled their lead nine minutes later to give them a 2-0 halftime lead Melody Chikoore scored the third goal for Herentals in 70 minutes to cushion their lead only to concede in 91 minutes when Ngapewa Katuta scored a consolation goal for the opponents Katuta’s goal was Ongo’s first at the tournament since they marked their debut in 2022 Herentals coach Lazarus Magaya was impressed with the team’s performance and hinted that there is a need to motivate the players ahead of the next game “We approach every game differently and we are now looking forward to the next game “We will psych up the girls so that they don’t become overconfident we want to avoid a scenario of winning one game and losing the remaining two in the group,” said Magaya Herentals striker Maud Mafurusa was named Player of The Match after her good performance which saw her scoring the opening goal The Students face Zambia’s Green Buffaloes on Saturday before rounding their group campaign against the University of Western Cape on Monday Puncture pushes Van der Poel into second ahead of Vanthourenhout as Iserbyt keeps classification lead Van Aert overcame a last-lap crash to cruise to the win on his home course by 35 seconds over Van der Poel. Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal) was best of the rest in third as his teammate, European champion Eli Iserbyt, did enough to hold onto the time-based classification lead. With a heavy, hilly and technical new course in Herentals ahead, Van der Poel and Van Aert shot away from the gun and quickly established themselves at the head of the field, with Vanthourenhout the only rider able to stay close in the opening lap. Van der Poel's mountain bike racing experience showed as he handled the steep slippery descents and rutty straightaways with aplomb. Van Aert, in contrast, went in for multiple bike changes in the first laps, trying to dial in the correct pressure and having to use precious energy to ride back to the Dutchman. By the end of the second lap, Van der Poel had a handful of seconds on Van Aert, with Vanthourenhout losing ground behind ahead of Pauwels Sauzen-Bingoal teammates Eli Iserbyt and Laurens Sweeck, and Toon Aerts (Telenet Baloise). Van der Poel built his lead on the third lap but disaster struck after the halfway point when the world champion's risk of running lower tyre pressures to help on the technical sections cost him - he punctured far from the pits and Van Aert was able to catch him and ride past, opening up a solid 30-second advantage by the end of lap four of six on his home course. The battle for the time-based classification continued behind. Coming into the Herentals round, Iserbyt led by 1:20 over Lars van der Haar (Telenet Baloise) with Aerts down 2:33, and the European champion continued to fight to limit his losses, chasing with Aerts and Quinten Hermans (Tormans) as Van der Haar faded. In the closing laps, Van Aert continued his strong ride to hold off Van der Poel, who simply could not close down the half-minute gap and with no dog in the general classification fight, he seemed to put it in cruise control and save energy for the bigger races ahead. Pelted by a torrential downpour, Vanthourenhout powered into the final lap at 1:23, with Aerts leading Iserbyt at 2:10, with Hermans and Sweeck seven seconds behind. By the finish, Van Aert had stretched his gap to 35 seconds on Van der Poel despite coming down in a steep downhill turn. Vanthourenhout was third at 1:32, with Aerts taking fourth over Iserbyt at 2:14 and 2:18, respectively. Iserbyt extended his lead over Van der Haar in the series classification by 30 seconds. HERENTALS Queens are on the brink of booking a place in to the semi-finals of the CAF Champions League COSAFA Qualifiers after registering a 1-0 win over Green Buffaloes of Zambia at Mpira Stadium in Malawi Saturday’s victory came at the back of a 3-1 win over Ongos FC from Namibia whom they beat Thursday in the opening game ‘The Students’ as Herentals are affectionately known are now setting the pace in Group A with six points three ahead of Green Buffaloes and University of Western Cape who they face this Monday in a fixture they will be searching for a draw or win to progress to the semi-finals Herentals Queens’ goal against Green Buffaloes was scored by their top rising striker Maud Mafurusa who is now on two goals at the tournament following Thursday’s opening goal against Ongos FC Mafurusa headed in a beautiful delivery from a corner kick in the 60th-minute to secure three points for the Zimbabwean side which is marking its debut at the tournament Ongos FC’s hopes of progressing beyond the group stages at the tourney was thwarted by South Africa’s University of Western Cape who beat them 3-0 Victory over Ongos was University of Western Cape’s first win at the tournament following a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Green Buffaloes in the first match The tournament will see winner progressing to the the CAF Champions League finals has turned down calls to run for the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) presidency despite growing support from the football community The football mother body is expected to hold elections January next year to elect the new leadership as per the newly ratified Constitution Several names have been thrown around with Walter Magaya former Warriors’ star player Peter Ndhlovu and Marshal Gore who is also a Zanu PF Member of Parliament (MP) has shrugged off overtures for him to bid for presidency “Lately I have been receiving a lot of calls from stakeholders to consider running for the position ZIFA presidency is something that I have not been thinking about I am ready to support whoever wants to go for it as long as they are competent and fit the required criteria “I think I love football enough and becoming its leader would have been very exciting especially with so much support from stakeholders who are making a lot of calls for me to become the ZIFA leader “I am really humbled to receive all those calls from key football people but I will support the right candidate for the post,”  Benza told NewZimbabwe.com The impending ZIFA elections have triggered interest among stakeholders as the next leader will have a tough task of turning around football in the country which has been in dire straits after years of maladministration who also serves in the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Sports said he will be throwing his support on a solid plan for the country’s soccer development “I have been in football administration for close to 30 years and we have also been running other sports like cricket and we have regularly provided national team players “I hope to support the right candidate for the position based on different factors,” Beza told this publication Kelvin Kaindu was a disappointed man this Sunday after his side was handed a 2-1 home defeat by Herentals at Barbourfields Stadium The result saw Herentals affectionately known as “The Students” recording a double over Bosso whom they also beat 1-0 in the reverse fixture played at Rufaro Stadium recently Herentals went for the break leading 1-0 after scoring in the 44th minute before Highlanders equalized seven minutes into the second half With determination to collect maximum points The Students scored their winning goal in the 56th minute before guarding their sticks jealously to deny the home side a chance to equalise I could tell from kick off that it was going to be a difficult game “From the first whistle our defence looked so jittery we could have even conceded a penalty from one long ball “From there again we made a lot of mistakes we struggled with defence,” said the Highlanders gaffer they didn’t even work for those goals “The number of errors we committed were so much and even the corner kick which led to the second goal I think we could have defended it properly we caused an unnecessary foul,” he added The result left Bosso on position 4 with 38 points Dynamos collected maximum points at Rufaro stadium after salvaging a 1-0 win over Chegutu Pirates Dembare remains in unbeaten under the guidance of interim coach Lloyd ‘Mablanyo’ Chigowe Hwange knocked down Chicken Inn 1-0 to bounce back to winning ways as they continue with their battle to survive relegation CAPS United’s inconsistency continued on Sunday as they were handed a 0-1 home defeat by Herentals Affectionately known as “Makepekepe” the Harare side has been struggling with form this season and have gone for three consecutive games without a win Sunday’s win marked a good start in the second round of the league following last week’s 1-0 win over Bikita Minerals at Sakubva Stadium CAPS United got better chances than us but we were lucky to have converted our chance “So I am happy we managed to collect maximum points “Of late we have been conceding in the first half I’m happy,” said Herentals coach Paul Benza Herentals’ victory saw them leapfrogging CAPS United to position seven on the log while Makepekepe dropped two places down to ninth position Dynamos maintained its sixth spot on the log with a 1-0 away win against Hwange in a match played at the Colliery Stadium Highlanders overpowered fellow city rivals Bulawayo Chiefs 2-0 while at Sakubva Stadium Manica Diamonds played a 0-0 draw against Tel One Castle Lager Premier Soccer League Matchday 19 Results Herentals Queens coach Lazarus Magaya is bullish ahead of their CAF Champions League COSAFA Qualifiers semi-finals clash against Botswana’s Gaborone United Ladies scheduled for Thursday at Mpira Stadium in Malawi The Female Students are enjoying a good run at the tournament where they finished top in Group A with six points losing one match against South Africa’s University of Western Cape who are playing Young Buffaloes from Eswatini in the other semi-final clash Although his team is marking its debut at the tournament Herentals coach Lazarus Magaya is confident it will make it to the final “Usually they say when a debutante plays in the semi-finals yesterday we had our regeneration exercises so we are going to top up,” said the coach on the sidelines of his team’s training session on Wednesday He added that his team is now taking a new trajectory in the knockout stage compared to how they were operating in the group games in the group stages points are what we were looking for and now winning matters the tactic and everything including the formation has to change,” he added The winner of the ongoing ten-day tournament which ends on Saturday will join defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns Ladies from South Africa and other teams from the other regions in the CAF Champions League finals scheduled for later this year Herentals Queens becomes the second team from Zimbabwe to play in the prestigious tournament Black Rhinos Queens being the first when they participated in the inaugural edition in 2021 Please visit these standalone sites for more information GE Aerospace | GE Vernova | GE HealthCare  2012---GE (NYSE: GE) today marked the 40th anniversary and recent expansion of its chemical production reaction plant in Herentals for its water and process technologies business The plant manufactures chemicals to treat water for industrial customers in Europe and the new expansion will increase the facility's production to approximately 27,000 tons per year GE can offer its customers a broad range of solutions for all their water treatment and purification needs GE's Herentals facility covers 780 acres in area and has more than 130 employees It plays a critical role in meeting industrial customers' growing water treatment needs in Europe Attending the anniversary celebration and inauguration of the expanded plant today were many dignitaries including Robert Faucher Embassy to the Kingdom of Belgium and Jan Peeters The new reaction plant encompasses a technologically advanced control room where the chemical production process can be carefully controlled and monitored this technology enables faster cycle time and best-in-class levels of safety and environmental protection The Herentals plant is a zero discharge site that is not discharging effluent and is reusing water for its own operational needs Metal corrosion inhibitors and effluent treatment chemicals like those manufactured at the Herentals plant are some of the most novel materials available on the market today GE's advanced water and wastewater treatment chemistries enable its customers to optimize plant operations protect equipment against unscheduled outages and comply with environmental regulations "GE has been active in Belgium for over 50 years and continues to invest as evidenced by the expansion of the water and process technologies' activities in Herentals GE is committed to providing solutions that drive customer-productivity whilst tirelessly seeking new opportunities for GE's global businesses to contribute to Belgium's economic future," said Roland Teixeira GE's water business has expanded its workforce in Belgium by 17 percent since 2010 GE in Belgium has more than 900 employees working in more than 10 locations GE's European headquarters is based in Brussels healthcare and mobility technologies and services supporting the region's sustainability targets The city of Herentals is located near Antwerp which has one of the largest seaports in Europe GE (NYSE: GE) works on things that matter. The best people and the best technologies taking on the toughest challenges. Finding solutions in energy, health and home, transportation and finance. Building, powering, moving and curing the world. Not just imagining. Doing. GE works. For more information, visit the company's website at www.ge.com GE Power & Water provides customers with a broad array of power generation energy delivery and water process technologies to solve their challenges locally Power & Water works in all areas of the energy industry including renewable resources such as wind and solar; biogas and alternative fuels; and coal The business also develops advanced technologies to help solve the world's most complex challenges related to water availability and quality Numerous products are qualified under ecomagination GE's commitment to providing innovative solutions that maximize resources drive efficiencies and help make the world work better Power & Water's seven business units include Aeroderivative Gas Turbines; Gas Engines; Nuclear Energy; Power Generation Services; Renewable Energy; Thermal Products and Water & Process Technologies Power & Water is GE's largest industrial business Follow GE Power & Water and its water business on Twitter @GE_PowerWater and @GE_Water Howard MastoMasto Public Relations [email protected] 1-518-786-6488 Beth CoffmanSoteryx Corporation [email protected] +1 518 886 1076 GE newsMasto Public Relations [email protected][email protected] +39 02 67335622 GE Celebrates 40th Anniversary and Expansion of Its Water Chemical Manufacturing..