“It is one of the toughest assignments there is” – Adrie van der Poel explains Mathieu’s Tour de France goals
Cycling
As the Tour de France kicks off today, Adrie van der Poel
doesn’t expect his son, Mathieu van der Poel, to chase the green jersey this
year, despite what many fans and experts believe.
"The green jersey is not an option at the moment. You
get into it, only after three, four or five days you know how you are doing.
But be careful: it is easy to talk about winning the green jersey, but it is
one of the toughest assignments there is. You have to be present at every
sprint, including the intermediate sprints," Adrie says.
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Mathieu hasn’t claimed a stage win at the Tour since 2021.
The expectation, though, is that drought could end this summer.
“And then there is also one that everything is possible:
time trials, difficult finishes and uphill,” Adrie says, pointing to Pogacar as
a major threat. “He is also going to be a solid opponent. I think that we can
only really say how Matje is doing after the first rest day. In practice you
often see that riders who ride in green after the first rest day keep the
jersey.”
It’s clear from Adrie’s comments that the focus is on seeing
how Mathieu settles into the race before making any declarations. The early
stages could be telling.
Fin MajorCycling Journalist
Fin Major is a UK-based writer at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2024. He is the site’s main writer for FAQs and evergreen explainers and has written around 2,000 pieces for the platform. Alongside this work, he focuses on in-depth analysis and covers the biggest races on the calendar, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, providing clear context around performance trends, tactics, and key storylines.
In his reporting, Fin uses reputable data sources such as ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available. Outside of writing, Fin is an active cyclist, which supports his practical understanding of the sport and its demands.
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