"It is really encouraging how he quickly got back on his bike and passed many riders" - Analysts don't write Wout van Aert off for remaining classics
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel was outstanding in the E3 Saxo Classic. The world champion benefited from a fall of his great competitor Wout van Aert at the foot of the Paterberg. However, according to many analysts not everything is lost yet for the Belgian.
The key moment was of course Van Aert's fall on the Paterberg. "Wout sees that Mathieu wants to go and for that he has to overtake numbers two and three to follow Mathieu. But if you don't feel good there, then you just don't do anything and you just have to hope that everyone else keeps the wheel. So that's a good sign," notes Laurens Ten Dam in Live Slow Ride Fast.
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Van der Poel did not look back and accelerated agaun on the famous climb. "That was a really impressive feat of cycling. He even keeps pedaling when he gets to the top and I think that's where he gets his biggest lead," says Thomas Dekker. "He must have trained really hard for that in Spain. I think they need fresh men every day."
Ten Dam and Dekker are certainly not writing Van Aert off yet. "It is really encouraging that after his fall he quickly got back on the bike and passed many riders. Especially at the top of the Oude Kwaremont you can see that he is really good, but there he may have made the wrong choice by going alone. He would have been better off letting Matteo Jorgenson close the gap to twenty seconds, but hey, he just felt the momentum."
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Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses 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.
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- 🐐❤️Lozza09-11-2026
- This is such a black eye to women's professional cyclocross if this result remains. Marie Schreiber won this race fairly. This finish is not unlike others in cyclocross. Lots of moving around to get to the finish not to cut anyone off , but to generate a sprint on soft wide tires caked with mud and sand. This is not nearly the same as a road race between two riders sprinting to the finish on faster bikes and thinner firmer tires. The powers in charge need to use some common sense, reverse this result and remember this is Cyclocross not Road racing. Unbelievable. . .Zencycle09-11-2026
- Tis beyond your comprehension fine sir so best not to look on with blind eyes to THE GOATS greatness.
Brucegel09-11-2026 - McNulty winning was beneficial in ensuring the rainbow jersey would not remain winless
Front24209-11-2026 - Eccelente! That's 7 riders in total in Red Bull who come from the devo team, 8 if you include Lipo
Rafionain-Glas09-11-2026 - again, nothing is going to be resolved. it is a discussion board. I simply said I didn't see how MS impeded LBs sprint. the UCI doesn't care about my thoughts, and I am really not that emotionally invested in it.mij09-11-2026
- provoke change, lol. this is a discussion board. nothing is going to change by what I say here. just commenting that it didn't look like MS impeded Brand. beyond that not trying to go too deep.mij09-11-2026
- as excellent as maga rednecks chloe dygert (and quinn simmons)?Ketterechts09-11-2026
- so what i understand is: i left a comment calling out the endless author CVs for being an unnecessary flex of expertise, and you responded by lecturing me (and others) on discrimination and value systems. hats off to you. you definitely lost me!Ketterechts09-11-2026
- I just love the flood of Americans into the top ranks of world cycling. In addition to being studs on the bike, they all seem to be excellent emissaries for our country.Occam09-11-2026
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🇧🇪 #E3SaxoClassic Proud of you, @WoutvanAert! 💛
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