PRESS CONFERENCE Mathieu van der Poel | Green Jersey not a goal and concerns over safety: "Making the bunch even bigger is a mistake"
Cycling
One of the biggest superstars in the entire cycling world, Mathieu van der Poel is heading to the Tour de France for the 5th time in his career in 2025. Ahead of Saturday's Grand Depart, the Dutchman took part in a pre-race press conference on Thursday, where CyclingUpToDate was part of the assembled media.
Despite being a former stage winner and a former wearer of the Maillot Jaune, some believe Van der Poel has somewhat underachieved at the Tour de France, given his immense and undoubted quality. This time around though, with a very intriguing and Van der Poel friendly parcours on offer at the Tour, the Alpecin-Deceuninck star is well positioned to add to his Grand Tour stage winning tally.
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Q: You’ve said in the past the Tour isn’t always your favourite race. If you had to compromise for it, would it look like this edition — especially the first 10 days?
A: Yeah, for sure — there are some opportunities. But of course, there are a lot of different riders here with different objectives. This first week will be hectic, but I think it’s a nice opening with lots of chances for our team.
Q: Is there a specific stage you’re looking forward to?
A: Not really. We look at each stage individually. You never know what will happen in the ones before. But I do think there are quite a few exciting stages. There are lots of possibilities. We’ll just take it day by day.
Q: Do you feel a bit at home here in the north of France, with Roubaix nearby? How is it to start here again?
A: Yeah, it’s nice to start not far from home — on roads close to Roubaix. It’s good to be here. Like I said, it’s going to be a very exciting first week of racing. Of course, I’m nervous, but everyone is nervous at the Tour de France. We’ll do our best.
Q: With so many stages in the first week that suit you, could the green jersey be a goal?
A: It’s not a goal at the moment. I’d have to do the bunch sprints for that — and we have a clear goal there with Jasper. I don’t know how the Tour will unfold. But no, I didn’t start this Tour aiming for the green jersey.
Q: With all the tension and tricky finishes, are you concerned about safety in the peloton this year?
A: Not really. This doesn’t change a lot. In the end, it’s always a bunch sprint — whether you add new features or not. Most of the time, it’s the riders’ behaviour that causes risk, which is normal because everyone’s fighting for the same position and there’s not enough space.
To really change things, the biggest impact would come from reducing the number of teams and riders. Making the bunch even bigger is a mistake. Less teams and less riders would make it safer.
Q: What do you think about the new final stage format in Paris?
A: It brings more stress. A big bunch will go to Montmartre. At the Olympics, it was a really small group. We’ll see what happens. I don’t think it’s bad for us, but I can understand why other riders aren’t big fans of the change.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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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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