"All these countries with no cycling history, they have riders there who can’t even follow for 10km" - Wout Poels critical of Olympic road race format
CyclingFriday, 15 December 2023 at 09:30
After a brilliant 2023 campaign that saw him take stage wins at both the Tour de France and the Vuelta a Espana, Wout Poels is targeting Olympic success in 2024. However, the Dutchman does have some gripes about the format of the men's road race.
“I think it’s ridiculous what they’ve done with all the spots," the 36-year-old laments in conversation with GCN. "And I saw that bloody breakdancing is in the Olympics. I’ve had a feeling that in the last 10 years cyclists have really started to target the Olympics more. It’s a real shame that they now make the rules that the peloton will only be 90 riders."
According to Poels, the current format of limiting the number of riders for top teams and giving the lesser teams more chance is actually detrimental for the sport.
"It’s ridiculous because you don’t have all the best riders on the start. Then all these countries with no cycling history, they have riders there who can’t even follow for 10km. It’s a nice Olympic thought but it doesn’t really work," he explains. "Ninety riders in the peloton, it takes some of the shine off. We only have three riders from the Netherlands and if your team has three riders then you almost can’t control the race. You have to make deals with other countries. But if you ask me if I want to go, I still do."
claps 9visitors 8
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Not sure this type of show will always be looked on positivelyMistermaumau06-06-2025
- Strategy? What strategy? They had less than Viable had at the Vuelta Kuss won. When you read management trying to offload blame with turns like « we tried to encourage him » (IDT) to watch Yates, you have to ask, is anyone directing anything? How about TELLING him?Mistermaumau06-06-2025
- They don’t half come up with some crap to turn events into stories. Problem is, if all this was true and so influential, that means 1. Riders are lacking inherent motivation and possibilities for motivation, 2. it’s due to race radio chatter he won and 3. They were lucky no attention was given and race radio didn’t mention him. In fact you are basically admitting outside influence skewed the race and if it works, this technique might get exploited commercially in future by corrupt or biased staff, rivals and officials. So c’mon guys, let’s stay a little factual coz otherwise you’re only going to shoot yourselves in the feet.Mistermaumau06-06-2025
- Maybe Ayuso will ride Tour de France coming July to help Pogi better than Adam Yates. We don't know what Gianetti and Matxin going on their minds.
James2631806-06-2025 - Glad it worked for Yates, I don't believe for 1 second that UAE would conduct themselves like so with Pog. #noway
leedorney06-06-2025 - He'd won the Giro after all. That should put him as the strongest rider by itself. His rivals couldn't match him on the Finestre. Superior team tactics, but also superior legs by no means. He didn't even miss a doping test. Believe it or notBM06-06-2025
- Solid worker this guy 💪leedorney06-06-2025
- One of the amazing things about cycling is how many races are happening at the same time. Stage, GC, and (as is clear here) job. It’s what makes the sport so interesting. On screen maybe not much is happening, but and yet so much is happening.RidesHills06-06-2025
- In contract year, i would say that if team duties permit, you are allowed to market yourself.abstractengineer06-06-2025
- Now its not a good team for talent development and opportunities. With Tadej hogging the GTs and the Monuments and the rest left fighting for scraps, there is very little chance for leadership roles which are critical in development of future greatsabstractengineer06-06-2025
Honestly, the Olympic Games [in Paris] not a stop on the World Tour. They are an opportunity for countries to compete in a friendly lvl race, in an "attempt to promote" the world peace. Sadly that is a lost for these atheletes. Given there are little to no Ukrainians, they should allow Russians and Belarussians to compete, besides tennis, and other non-track and field sports
I mean how else do you expect countries to begin cycling development and exposure to other young athletes so that a "cycling history" can start?
The Olympic Games are not a stop on the World Tour. They are an opportunity for countries to compete at a friendly level in an attempt to promote world peace. That is lost on many of these pro athletes.
Well, sort of. The Olympics bills itself as a world-championship caliber sporting event, and there is at least nominally a performance standard involved in qualifying. From their website:
"Athletes will be able to qualify in two ways for the Paris 2024 Games, with 50% of qualification places based on achieving the entry standard for an event within the qualification period, and the other 50% based on the World Athletics Ranking within the ranking period"
Still, it's true in lots of events that lesser athletes from small countries get to go while superior athletes from bigger or better ones don't due to limits on the number of entrants per country. And let's face it: if in cycling on the best riders got to go, they would almost all be from 7 or 8 European countries and a few stragglers. Too bad they won't let in more total riders, though. TDF stages routinely have 170+ riders in the peloton, no idea why they can't let that many ride in the Olympics.
From the Olympic Games website itself:
The Olympic Games are the world’s most powerful symbol of unity in all our diversity, with the participation of teams from 206 National Olympic Committees and the IOC Refugee Olympic Team. They send a powerful message of diversity, inclusion and non-discrimination as athletes from all races, religions, ethnicities and cultures compete with each other and live together in harmony in the Olympic Village.
There are no countries participating in the Olympic Games, but rather athletes from 206 NOCs who are supporting the mission of the Olympic Games to unite the world in peaceful competition.
As far as I know, those atheletes mainly compete and representing themselves, not their country. As many atheletes, at the Olympic Games, regardless what country they are competing under, are competing for themselves, instead of their country.