Mathieu van der Poel will defend his world road title in Zurich, Switzerland on Sunday. In the year after his victory in Glasgow, Van der Poel has given his rainbow jersey even more shine with an inimitable series in the cobbled classics and a Tour de France in the service of his team.
After the world championship in Glasgow, Van der Poel did not start a race for a month. It won’t be until October that he will pin a first jersey number on his new jersey. He will ride four more semi-classics in France and Belgium before the start of his cyclo-cross season. In the SUPER 8 Classic he also achieved his first victory as world champion.
After a cyclo-cross season in which he won thirteen of the fourteen races where he started, Van der Poel will start in the classics. Just like in previous years, he opts for a very limited schedule, with only seven competition days in the entire spring.
In Milan-San Remo, Van der Poel tries to escape on the Poggio with Tadej Pogacar, but the duo does not reach the finish. He changes gears and guides teammate Jasper Philipsen to victory on the Via Roma.
A week later, a first victory of the season follows in the E3 Saxo Classic, one of the few races still missing from his record. A few days later, the Dane Mads Pedersen is too strong in Ghent-Wevelgem.
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But then comes the crowning achievement of his year as world champion. In the holy week of the cobbled classics, Van der Poel wins both the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix with an impressive solo. In the north of France he even gets teammate Philipsen on the podium.
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
After the cobbled classics, Van der Poel ends the first part of his season with an anonymous Amstel Gold Race (22nd) and a Liège-Bastogne-Liège (3rd) in which he has to acknowledge his superiority in Tadej Pogacar.
More than two months later, Van der Poel is at the start of the Tour de France to prepare for the Olympic Games in Paris, the big goal in the second half of the season. He appears in a few breakaways and guides Philipsen to three stage wins, but rides a fairly inconspicuous Tour.
Disappointment follows in Paris: the Belgians’ tactical plan dictates that Van der Poel is not allowed to drive a meter without eternal rival Wout van Aert in the wheel. He eventually crossed the line in twelfth place, well away from the medals.
ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER AD
After Paris, the last goal of the year comes into view: defending his rainbow jersey. The course in Zurich is not really tailor-made for him, but in the Renewi Tour and the Tour of Luxembourg Van der Poel shows that his form is improving.
Can Van der Poel extend his world title on the road? Read all about the chances of the Dutch hope in our preview.
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