Mathieu van der Poel misses Top10 at Olympic Games - "When Remco went and no one reacted, I knew immediately that it was going to be very difficult"
Cycling
Mathieu van der Poel knew the danger that the Belgian team posed for him at the Olympic Games. Whilst he was not put under serious pressure before the final circuit in Paris by his main rivals, he knew that Remco Evenepoel was a big source of danger and recognized his chance of winning were close to none after the Belgian made his move.
Daan Hoole helped control the breakaway throughout the day for the Netherlands and later on Dylan van Baarle also did some work. Van der Poel attacked as soon as the peloton entered the final circuit in Montmartre, initially only taking with him Wout van Aert. However, his attack wouldn't stick due to the lack of collaboration from other riders, and with 38 kilometers to go he saw the eventual winner go up the road with a storming attack.
"I actually thought the race was over there. We rode away with four or five men, all strong riders. We also had a nice gap, so I thought the race would be between us," he admitted in an interview with NOS. "But when we were caught again, Remco went at the right moment.”
“It was a difficult race. When Remco went and no one reacted, I knew immediately that it was going to be very difficult. I didn't necessarily go very deep into the red there. That wasn't too bad." But the victory was gone. With no radios, riders of many teams and no teammates, the final 30 kilometers were just pure chaos where he tried to be among the top groups but attacks left and right were too much for him.
“I had already said beforehand that he was one of the dangerous riders to let ride. Dylan [van Baarle] did well by keeping the gap as small as possible. I did everything or nothing for Montmartre one more time. I got Wout [van Aert] with me and he didn't ride of course, because Remco was in front. That's the race situation."
Van der Poel crossed the line in 12th place, behind the chasing group, a disappointing outcome for the World Champion that did show his best legs on the day but couldn't make the difference. "I think I was good, but it was just a very difficult race,"
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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- many people advise him to grow slowly and rather do giro and/or vuelta instead of tdf. but i can totally understand that he is not satisfied with taking over once pogi declines, but instead beat him in his prime. so if he goes for tdf again, i‘m all for it. let‘s hope that pogi recovers soon!Ketterechts07-11-2026
- So gracious to offer something no-one would be prepared to pay for. The Giro is not the Tour and doesn’t command the same interest or attract the same “elite” (those willing to pay to be a part of something they consider has ego boosting potential). Roadside viewing will always largely remain free for everyone outside circuits. Introduction of a symbolic entrance to mountain climbs is worthy of exploration. Asking 1-2€ isn’t going to repulse real fans (most will spend 50-100€ on their outing that day all things included) but will prevent a portion of the total knobhead thrillseekers who will join in any large gathering as long as it’s free, just because they’re attracted to crowds, without which it it difficult for them to work up their anti-social behaviour.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- How is radio going to help when someone went over a cliff or bridge or off the roadside into a forest unnoticed and is laying there unconscious?Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- Yep, next we’ll be accusing F1 drivers of avoiding Le Mans.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- But on what is that opinion based? Are you holding him to a different standard than others? Are you saying he should do learn to like something he doesn’t Are you saying he hasn’t achieved enough Are you saying he pretends to be better than his results? It’s actually a really strange opinion to oust if you consider it objectively or rationally. Try applying it to others or yourself by asking if not EVERYONE should then be doing more? Nobody in athletics or swimming gets criticism for not expanding their repertoire when a rival or someone else does. In fact, most who move to another event get accused of running from their rival. Opinions are boring, the reasons behind them are what count.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
- for a medical chief to throw things like is just bad. There are already radios which were banned for spectacle. allow radios. Gps trackers are not a complete solutionabstractengineer07-11-2026
- Yeah man...PogiSloFans07-11-2026
- any rider less than 25 whether they are really ready for the position of leadership of GT is probably not the case. I think Pogi himself suffered when he was defeated by Jonas in the TDF twice. But that would be the team's job to ensure support so that they can bounce back. It requires a team and time to get back up and win after getting knocked down.abstractengineer07-11-2026
- I'm very glad he got the big late Quickstep Vuelta win and I hope he has a few left for Euskaltel-Euskadi.flyer07-11-2026
- My memories of Ivan Basso aren't good but I liked his sister Elisa ok.flyer07-11-2026
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Déjà légendaire : quand Mathieu van der Poel lance son attaque à Montmartre 🤩 #Paris2024, à suivre en intégralité sur Eurosport via Max, Canal+ et nos autres partenaires
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