Is Mathieu van der Poel as strong in training as he is in racing? "We have the same feeling as his rivals"
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel will be supported by several cyclocross specialists this Sunday at the Tour of Flanders including Quinten Hermans, Gianni Vermeersch and lastly, Timo Kielich. The latter discussed the gap between his leader and the rest within the team in such terrain.
The 25-year old was asked if it's possible to see his leader not get collaboration from rivals when on the attack at the Ronde. "That's a racing tactic you could use. It's a tactic to beat guys like Van der Poel and Pogacar. Like Pedersen and Ganna rode in the E3 Saxo Classic," Kielich said in 'De Koffiestop' podcast.
To note however, Pedersen and Ganna collaborated fully with van der Poel in that race, before he attacked to a solo win at the Oude Kwaremont. "In retrospect, you can think: shouldn't they have stopped riding earlier? Especially Ganna. But they are also so sure of themselves that they just race along."
Such an offensive tactic would benefit Alpecin this Sunday, seeing as UAE Team Emirates carry a lot of quality riders and Visma have surged through at Dwars door Vlaanderen with a collective masterpiece - before the tragic finale. At last year's Gent Wevelgem van der Poel was outplayed by a Lidl-Trek that had numbers, and they will be wary of that scenario.
"... He rarely shows a weak moment during training. If he has a gap during training, you can't close it. Not even with the whole group. It's the same on television, it's sometimes the same during training. We have the same feeling as his rivals," the Belgian argues ahead of his debut in Flanders.
"I have been riding for the team for a few years now, but the racing during training has become less and less. This year the team training camps were divided. This year I was not with Mathieu. But last year there was more structure and the racing became a bit discouraged," he reveals within the team.
However, he is aware that he's got a very solid and confident leader who should be able to handle himself in any scenario over the upcoming monuments - where he's won in the past. "When he was world champion last year... If you start in Roubaix with the world champion, that is very chic. As a person he is also someone who handles the attention well. He seems to deal with everything very carefree. He is very chill."
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💥 Get ready for the 109th @RondeVlaanderen this Sunday!
— Alpecin-Deceuninck Cycling Team (@AlpecinDCK) April 4, 2025
Mathieu van der Poel, our 3-time winner and defending champion, is prepared for another epic showdown. Mathieu and teammates are focused and ready to tackle the iconic cobbles and Flemish hills.
As always, MvdP is… pic.twitter.com/BC6X7nmRb9
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