Mathieu van der Poel jumps back into Tour de Luxembourg lead: "I can be quite satisfied with my time trial"
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel won the opening stage of the Tour de Luxembourg and after two more strong days on the bike, he lost it to a tactically clever Mauri Vansevenant. However, during today's stage 4 time-trial, the Dutchman has found himself once again in the lead of the race after a strong effort.
"A time trial is always difficult and today it was very tough until the top of the climb. I managed to keep my pace, but then I lacked some freshness to really ride the pace that I wanted until the finish line," van der Poel said in a post-race interview. "I knew that the first part suited me, because aerodynamics were less important there". Over the first intermediate point the Dutchman was second only 4 seconds behind Juan Ayuso, but then lost time in the final portion of the time-trial and lost 19 in the end - overtaken by a few riders.
"From there it was very fast, so the aero guys had an advantage over me. However, I can be quite satisfied with my time trial, the result and the feeling on the bike. I am happy that I am recovering well," he admits. After Vansevenant struggled against the clock, van der Poel took advantage of his previously-built lead to return to the yellow jersey, although he has four riders within only 10 seconds of the race lead including UAE Team Emirates duo Juan Ayuso and Marc Hirschi who will be big threats.
"I can now fight for the classification, although that was never the main goal," he admits. "We will see how the race develops on Sunday. I am missing three teammates due to illness, but the Tour of Luxembourg is already a success for me". Tomorrow's stage sees the riders return to the city of Luxembourg and the hilly finale will suit him very well.
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- He is boring
leedorney08-11-2026 - To Twoje przemyślenia te bla, bla :)
Dariusz08-11-2026 - Uwielbiam patrzeć, jak wyjeżdża na czoło peletonu i zaczyna się rzeź...Dariusz08-11-2026
- Yeah, unreal.
parisbound0008-11-2026 - there needs to be space in life for pointless comments!Ketterechts08-11-2026
- That is a very lazy way of putting it but so far on this website it seems like everyone is happy to look at everything lazily, even things that annoy them intensely. All they want to do is state their feeling and position but ask most to analyse a problem or come up with solutions or improvements and you’re stunned by silence. Nobody even really knows how this all happens. It’s very simple and quick to just say the UCI did it but I bet you they didn’t, I bet you not more than 2 people were involved, more likely just 1. The UCI may be ultimately responsible but it is not their decision, this is about hierarchy, power and delegation. The fact that protest is possible also means it isn’t over and that MORE people could get involved for a thorough review which could throw up anything. It is highly likely it was a sole commissar who decided and has that power in a first round. Therein might lie the problem the UCI has to consider, is it acceptable to give so much authority to one single person when it is quite possible for them to have a natural bias or be too easily susceptible to imposed bias. Who is to say an individual in this position isn’t susceptible to collaboration with outside players with interests in the results, nations, families, teams, betting companies, etc. On the one hand we have sports where these problems have been worked on way more to reduce such problems, on the other hand we have sports with far stricter and more draconian rules not even concerning safety or obstruction that nobody really questions like false starts or stepping out of lane or zones in athletics. If cycling hastowork on itself, it would be good if protagonists (all kinds) would start doing a little more than just moaning over outcomes.Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- Yes, so why not make comments less pointless?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
- What a race! I didn't expect Vanthourenhout to collapse like that, and Wyseure did take the fight to Nys, but there was no doubt at the end. I also wonder what Aubin Sparfel would be capable of were he to race in the elites now. In the U23 ranks he is making good work of Giel Lejeune, who himself is among the better riders in the elites, and a top 10 contender in the big races (3rd at Kleebergcross, 8th at Berencross and 5th at Heerderstrand). In the French Cup, Sparfel is significantly better than Romain Debord (8th at Koppenbergcross and 10th at the Euros) and Rémi Lelandais (12th at Koppenbergcross and 19th at the Euros).
Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - There really was nothing in it. Schreiber was so much faster, and Brand was fighting to stay in the wheel in the sprint. Schreiber did move a bit, but to say she closed the door doesn't make sense because Brand couldn't enter it anyway, abd she wasn't impeded.Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026
- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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Mathieu "I have no GC ambitions" van der Poel. God bless him. #SkodaTour
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