Strade Bianche director: "Who says that Wout van Aert or Mathieu van der Poel will not be at the start again next year?"

Mauro Vegni, director of RCS - who organized Strade Bianche - was very vocal in an interview about the safety conditions of the race, and how many of the crashes that have impacted this year's event were down to the road conditions and rider risks. Many comment that the race has become too hard for the classics specialists, but he denies this is the case.

"Who says that Wout van Aert or Mathieu van der Poel will not be at the start again next year?" Vegni said in words to Het Nieuwsblad. "Pogacar was there, that was all I needed. From the New York Times to the BBC, the race was talked about everywhere. And if Wout and Mathieu really stay away because the race has become longer or harder, then I want to think about that. But everyone knows that this is not the reason".

Van der Poel and van Aert both raced the cyclocross season into the World Championships, and prioritize the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix as their main goals for the spring. With this in mind, having a fitness peak a month beforehand is not the traditional build-up. The race's brutality and fatigue aspect - besides the risks - also make it an unattractive option for those looking to prepare for a different race.

Van der Poel began his season at Le Samyn and is now racing Tirreno-Adriatico as he builds towards Milano-Sanremo, his first goal of the season. Meanwhile Van Aert raced until the Opening Weekend, and is now undergoing an altitude camp before returning to competition in late March. Both have tailor-made preparations, and including Strade Bianche (like several other cobbled classics specialists) does not fit in perfectly.

The race's difficulty certainly does have a degree of importance in this decision, but it's not critical in Vegni's opinion, and won't change for the time being. The presence of a rider like Tadej Pogacar who seems unmatchable is also not the most motivating aspect of the race for other riders who would only settle for a victory.