“As long as Mathieu van der Poel is at the start, the chances for the rest are quite minimal" - Sven Vanthourenhout agrees with Roger De Vlaeminck on predictability of Cyclocross World Championships

Roger De Vlaeminck recently gave some scathing criticism of the upcoming Cyclocross World Championships, following the snubs of both Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock. Notably, Belgian national coach Sven Vanthourenhout has a similar opinion.

“I fear it,” admits Vanthourenhout in quotes collected by Wielerflits. “As long as Mathieu van der Poel is at the start, the chances for the rest are quite minimal. I think we better remain realistic about that. Mathieu was the best of the Big Three anyway, he is the very best cyclocross rider in the world. Normally Wout comes closest to him, shortly followed by Pidcock. But what are you going to do against him now?”

“I think that the World Championship is and will remain the highlight of a cyclocross season. Whoever is there at the start should actually have no influence on your ambitions or preparation," continues Vanthourenhout. "As a rider I would always try to reach my best level of the entire cross season in that cross. I'm not going to say that you are only judged on that, but the World Championship is a very important benchmark that shows that you can compete anywhere.”

One of the riders with the biggest hope of upsetting van der Poel will be Eli Iserbyt. “Mathieu is and remains the big favorite. It is a great pity that Van Aert and Pidcock are not there for the excitement. But hey, a lot can happen in one day. It is important to be in good order yourself,” says the Belgian. "In a normal world it will be very difficult to become world champion against Mathieu van der Poel. I don't assume bad luck or other things.”