Mathieu van der Poel returns to racing this Saturday: "It's nice to be back in Belgium"

Mathieu van der Poel will make his competitive comeback next Saturday. The Dutchman from Alpecin-Deceuninck takes part in Dwars door het Hageland, after an altitude training around La Plagne.

"My shape and hair have had a nice boost during this training camp," he says with a photo of some Alpecin products, of course the main sponsor of his formation.

"Now it's time to start racing again," added van der Poel. He will be seen next week in Dwars door het Hageland and the Baloise Belgium Tour. “I'd rather race something that gives me a chance to win. In addition, I've been away from home for a while, so it's nice to be back in Belgium with my girlfriend, friends and family," he said about his past months during on the press conference.

The Dutchman's big goal remains to get yellow jersey in opening stages of Tour de France in Pays Basque and then to fight for rainbow jersey in Glasgow.