Is Mathieu van der Poel's spring already a success? "Yes, but the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix are the most important races"
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel is riding a wave of success for over two years now, barely having any wrong step, and maintaining his form and health pristine at the key moments of his seasons. Without major obstacles, he continues to evolve and expand his palmarès, which already includes another Milano-Sanremo and E3 Saxo Classic this spring. However, despite not having much pressure anymore, his main goals are still to come.
After the Belgian classic this Friday however, he was not pleased with the collective acceleration that happened after an early crash which saw him and several other favourites almost three minutes down at a certain point. “I don’t think it’s fair play to go full throttle after a crash where more than half of the peloton is blocked. For me, this is something we as a team would never do. But yes, in the end I think we handled it quite well," Van der Poel shared with Wielerflits.
“No, I was already quite motivated, also because the team worked so hard. Of course I want to finish it with a victory. Without the team I can’t fight for the victory, so yes, I am really grateful for the work they did," he aknowledges. "I’m not going to waste too many words on it. It just shows the real problem in cycling, in my opinion.”
The Dutchman matched the attacks of Mads Pedersen and then when he launched his own at Oude Kwaremont, there was no response which allowed him to ride solo to Harelbeke for another triumph. Next week he will have to face a Tadej Pogacar on the very same climbs however and the challenge may be significantly harder.
And then in Roubaix, he will meet the World Champion once again. “It’s not a big surprise of course. It was a surprise to me that he didn’t ride today. I can understand a bit better that he’s also cancelling Sunday (Gent-Wevelgem, ed.). But yes, he will definitely be an opponent in Paris-Roubaix," van der Poel knows.
He has won the cyclocross World Championships and now he's added two big wins to his short spring stint. For most riders it would have already been an absolute success, but the Dutchman will be looking to get more over the coming weeks. “Yes, but the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix are the most important races for me. And those races are still to come. But you could say that my spring has been a great success so far".
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Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
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.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
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)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
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parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
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