"Extremely encouraging with the Tour de France just around the corner" - Mathieu van der Poel proving people wrong at the Dauphiné says Laurens Ten Dam:

Mathieu van der Poel has made a strong return to racing at the Criterium du Dauphiné, despite coming in under less-than-ideal circumstances. His recent crash in a mountain bike World Cup event left him with a small wrist fracture, casting doubt over whether he’d even make the start line in France. But after four stages, the Dutchman has shown he’s already back in the mix.

Former pro and analyst Laurens ten Dam has been closely following Van der Poel’s performance and believes there’s plenty of reason for optimism ahead of the Tour de France.

Van der Poel hit the ground running with back-to-back third-place finishes in the opening two stages, followed by fifth on stage three and an impressive sixth in the individual time trial. It’s clear he’s not at full capacity just yet — but the trajectory is unmistakably upward. “He’s had two weeks less training because of the injury,” explains Ten Dam in an interview with Wieler Revue. “There were all sorts of doom scenarios being thrown around, but two weeks later, he’s proving them wrong.”

Despite consistently strong results, Van der Poel is yet to win a stage at the Dauphiné — something Ten Dam attributes to slight lingering effects from his layoff. “What you can see is that he’s come into the Dauphiné slightly undertrained. He’s suffering a bit more than usual, his heart rate is a touch higher, and he fades earlier than we’re used to seeing from him.”

Still, Ten Dam is confident Van der Poel is on the right track for peak form in July. “One day he’s sprinting for the win, the next he’s up the road in the breakaway. A fully fit Mathieu would have won that sprint on day one, no doubt. But what we’re seeing is extremely encouraging with the Tour de France just around the corner.”

While some have questioned Van der Poel’s continued commitment to mountain biking — particularly after three crashes in his last four starts — Ten Dam believes the Dutch star is far from ready to walk away.

“He’s very stubborn when it comes to the mountain bike,” he said. “Everyone’s been telling him to drop it, especially after some uncharacteristically clumsy crashes. But he’s made it clear he’s sticking with it.”

“And why not? He usually delivers on what he sets his mind to. I think he’ll have a really strong ride at the Mountain Bike World Championships. He seems even more focused now. And judging by how he’s raced this week, I honestly believe he’s on course for a very strong Tour de France.”