Compatriot of Mathieu van der Poel believes he should skip Tour de France: "There’s just not much in it for him in this Tour"

In 2023 Mathieu van der Poel raced the Tour de France and proved to be an excellent leadout for Jasper Philipsen, whilst preparing for the World Championships in which he won. In 2024 he rode the Tour but was largely absent and far from his best form, whilst it didn't lead to a result post-Tour. Laurens Ten Dam, former pro and current gravel racer, argues the Alpecin-Deceuninck rider should not race it in 2025.

Van der Poel hinted at a possible absence from the Tour, instead focusing on Mountain Biking and a possible debut at the Vuelta a España next season. "If he really wants to become world champion in mountain biking, then he doesn’t necessarily have to go to the Tour," Ten Dam said in his 'Live Slow Ride Fast' podcast.

However this Tuesday morning the 2025 Tour route was revealed and features a parcours very different than that of the past three edition. In 2021 Van der Poel won a stage and wore the yellow jersey in the first week due to the punchy finales that were presented. Ever since that has been absent, and instead favoured the climbers - whilst 2022 was not badly suited, the race started with a time-trial in Denmark that created big gaps right away.

This year there was a gravel stage, whilst previously we've had cobblestones at the Tour. None will be the case next summer. "That would really have been a stage for him. There’s just not much in it for him in this Tour, so I understand why he’s saying, 'I don’t know, I’ve done it twice already.' He’s pulled eighteen sprints for Jasper Philipsen".

However the first week of the next edition will feature hilly finales on stages 2 and 4 before a time-trial where differences will be created and the chances of him wearing the yellow jersey fade. But still we've got hilltop finishes in stages 6 and 7 - the latter in the Mur-de-Bretagne where his sole Tour stage thus far - and then again on stage 11 into Toulouse. It's a route that actually provides plenty opportunities for the classics specialists and one where van der Poel has very realistic chances of winning and chasing his own goals.

But Ten Dam believes that is not enough to make the choice to focus on the Grand Boucle once again, and that it's a year to make a change: "He went to the Tour for that. He’s also done the World Championships and became the gravel world champion. He’s raced so much on the road, and the playful Mathieu might just want to try something new."