“I especially hope to be outstanding next week” - Mathieu van der Poel hoping to perform well ahead of the Ronde van Vlaanderen
Cycling
After playing a vital role in Jasper Philipsen’s victory at Milano-Sanremo last weekend, Mathieu van der Poel is hoping to pick up a few strong results himself this week ahead of his next Monument at the Ronde van Vlaanderen.
The Dutchman is set to race both the E3 Saxo Classic and Gent-Wevelgem this weekend as part of the Flemish ‘Holy Week’ in his build up towards De Ronde at the end of the month. This will be the first time that he will race against his rival Wout van Aert on the road this season, having already faced each other on the cyclocross field earlier in the year.
When asked ahead of the E3 Saxo Classic about his form after last weekend and going into this hard block of racing, Van der Poel said in an interview with WielerFlits that “whether I was outstanding in Milano-Sanremo? That's saying a lot, but I was good. I especially hope to be outstanding next week”.
On his strategy for the race, he went on to say “we will try to compete hard, just like last year, when it was very difficult. E3 is ideal for racing. But after the final it will still be a long time to get here in Harelbeke. Every team knows that you have to sit at the front. We'll try that again. It is often better to take the initiative yourself than to wait for others”.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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It's almost time for @E3SaxoClassic. Last year @mathieuvdpoel finished on the podium of this beautiful classic. Also for this edition the motivation is high. This is our lineup for tomorrow! 💙 #alpecindeceuninck
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