Mathieu van der Poel is starting his road season in one of the most off-road races in the calendar.
Strade Bianche is seeing the return of it's 2021 winner as the leader of
Alpecin-Deceuninck.
After taking a
two-week break the Dutch rider restarted his training ahead of the season. Van der Poel conquered a fifth Cyclocross world title this February, and has now without the pressure on his shoulders prepared for a debut alongside his road teammates. In 2021 he's won the Italian classic in spectacular fashion and he begins the race this Saturday as a big favourite.
