"I will no longer be in top shape" - Mathieu van der Poel likely to change late-season plans and end at MTB Olympic Games Test Event
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel won the World Championships and with that, decided to prolong his season. Now with the rainbow jersey, he's been showing off his new set of colours, but he may change his plans once again as he is not finding good form and doesn't see the point of not taking some deserved rest.
"I don't know if I'll still get it. I think Paris-Tours is one of the more beautiful races of the season, that's why I wanted to race it. But if it doesn't get better, I don't know. Just riding around for the sake of riding around isn't much use either," van der Poel admitted in an interview with Het Nieuwsblad. "Maybe it would be better to rest and prepare for the cross-season. A longer period without racing will be good for me."
He added a few classics now for the month of September. Despite his claim of modest form, he still rode to a fourth place yesterday at the GP de Wallonie where he was a headliner. "Oh I never expected to win again," he responded after his result. "Don't forget that the Mountain Bike World Championship would normally be my last race of the season. I'll just add everything I've ridden since then. But I notice that I will no longer be in top shape, both physically and mentally."
Hence some of the races he added to his calendar will likely be removed, but not before he races the Paris Olympics MTB test event, where he'll discover the route of a major goal for 2024 on the 23rd and 24th of September. "I definitely want to do the Olympic mountain bike test event. Just to have the feeling on that bike again and because I definitely want to know the route towards the Olympic Games. That's why I continued to race here all day. I hope I can get a little better. But I already know that I won't get my best form ther," he concluded.
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A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
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Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
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- great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- He should be in a different team. It was detrimental. For them it does not matter if he does not develop. He should have gone to a team where they need him to succeed.abstractengineer10-11-2026
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🇳🇱 Mathieu van der Poel 🗣 "Maybe it's better to rest and prepare for the CX season. A longer period without cycling would be good. I won't reach my best level again this season anyway, mentally nor physically. I still want to do the Paris MTB test event though." (Sportwereld)
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