He is still postponing his return to cyclo-cross. Victim of a collision against a post in Loenhout, Mathieu van der Poel is not sufficiently recovered to be present in Dendermonde on Sunday. “I took a test (Friday). It’s clear that Dendermonde arrives too early. On uneven terrain, my ribs still hurt too much. For now, I have no choice but to remain patient“, explained to the Dutch media the rider of the Alpecin-Deceuninck team who this season won the five events in which he took part (Zonhoven, Mol, Gavere, Loenhout and Besançon).
The world champion had already had to skip the Superprestige round of Baal on January 1st and the prestigious meeting in the dunes of Koksijde on Friday. However, this package does not postpone the rest of his cross-country season nor his road campaign.
A missed meeting with Van Aert
“On the asphalt, I don't feel any pain“, he said on Friday, as he was preparing to leave for a ten-day training course in Spain. This package is especially a disappointment for cyclo-cross enthusiasts since the Dendermonde event was to be the scene one of the rare confrontations this year between “MVDP” and its great Belgian rival Wout Van Aert.
Despite this setback, Van der Poel remains the huge favorite for the World Championships in Liévin, at the beginning of February in France, where he intends to equal the record for world titles (7) held by the Belgian Eric De Vlaeminck.
