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Mathieu van der Poel on Tour de France route: "If it continues to evolve like this, there’s little point for guys like me to come to a Grand Tour"
CyclingWednesday, 17 July 2024 at 10:52
More and more Grand Tours organizers are looking to provide the most spectacular races and often that includes a lot of mountains, and to balance it out a few certain opportunities for sprinters. Among these past few years there have been less and less hilly stages and hilltop finishes which certainly discourages the classics specialists. Mathieu van der Poel for example admits there is little point anymore for himself to race one.
“I can’t change much about it myself. I had already said beforehand that there are few opportunities for guys like me. Then it becomes difficult," van der Poel said in an interview with Vive le Vélo. Recently, his father Adrie said "what can you do with his type of rider in the Tour? Okay, he was still useful in the sprint for Jasper [Philipsen], but your own chance is minimal if you make a Tour that looks like this."
And that is the reality. Whilst in 2021 the two initial stages finished on hilltops and van der Poel managed to win a stage and race into the yellow jersey, that hasn't been the case in the following years. The fact that riders like Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard can climb the short steep ascents better than the specialists affects their chances, but the early stages of the Tour are being designed harder and harder which makes a yellow jersey impossible. But in the 2024 edition for example, only stage 9 realistically suited the World Champion.
"Too few opportunities? Everyone has their own opinion, but it’s a shame. If it continues to evolve like this, there’s little point for guys like me to come to a Grand Tour. It’s a shame. Like on Sunday, there’s not much you can do other than finish within the time," he says. On multiple days, that have taken place and will still take place, it will be the same story - whilst van der Poel also only played an important leadout role for Philipsen on one stage.
But last year van der Poel, besides the leadouts, was equally absent from the race, and ended up reaching his absolute best form for the World Championships right after. He's hoping the same can happen now. “I’ve opted for a similar build-up. I feel better now than I did last year at this moment. In 2023, I was a bit sick. I feel quite okay, but that’s certainly no guarantee of the same form," he adds. "We are candidates with a few men. It may be a bit comparable to Glasgow, but the Olympic race will be a bit less controlled with fewer teammates.”
Van der Poel also comments on Remco Evenepoel who is having a breakthrough Tour de France and barring any incident should be able to finish on the podium. The Dutchman believes his occasional training partner can some day reach the level of Tadej Pogacar and Jonas Vingegaard: “It will be very difficult, but I believe in it. What he is doing now is incredibly impressive. And he has his time trial as a weapon. I think it should be possible".
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