“He’s had a good break” – Mathieu van der Poel’s cyclocross return to be confirmed imminently, says Christoph Roodhooft
Cyclocross
After a short off-season spent recharging in the United States, Mathieu van der Poel is back in training and preparing for his latest assault on the cyclocross calendar. According to team boss Christoph Roodhooft, the world champion’s return to the mud is now only a matter of weeks away – with an official announcement set to be made soon.
Van der Poel, who wrapped up his 2025 campaign after the Mountain Bike World Championships in mid-September, has been gradually increasing the intensity of his training since returning from holiday. “He’s had a good break,” Roodhooft told Sporza. “He’s now training towards his cyclocross campaign.”
The exact date of his first race remains under wraps, but the Alpecin-Deceuninck boss hinted that it will be revealed during the upcoming presentation of the 2026 UCI Cyclocross World Championships in Hulst. The event, which takes place from 30 January to 1 February in the Netherlands, could see Van der Poel chase a record-breaking eighth elite world title — surpassing the all-time mark set by the legendary cyclocross icon Erik De Vlaeminck.
Read also
Building towards another historic season
Van der Poel heads into the 2025/26 cyclocross season as one of the most successful riders in the discipline’s illustrious history, boasting a staggering seven elite rainbow jersey victories and a win rate of around 70% across his more than 200 races as a pro. Despite balancing commitments across the road, mountain bike and cyclocross seasons, his dominance in the mud remains almost unrivalled.
His likely reappearance this winter will be eagerly anticipated. In recent years, Van der Poel has opted for a selective cross campaign – focusing on key World Cups, the Dutch Championships, and the World Championships themselves – while using the discipline as both a competitive outlet and a technical sharpening block for his spring classics campaign on the road.
For Roodhooft, the Dutchman’s preparations appear perfectly on track. “He’s training now towards his cross campaign,” he reiterated, while also confirming that the team’s star female rider, Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, is recovering well from the knee injury that has delayed her own start to the 2025/26 season. “Everything is moving in the right direction,” Roodhooft smiles.
With Van der Poel’s return to the mud imminent and Hulst set to host the biggest showdown of the winter, anticipation is already building that the reigning world champion could once again write another chapter in cyclocross history.
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.
claps 6visitors 4
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- I hope 2027 is his year.mij03-11-2026
- why does he have to? many GT riders from Froome to Contador to Indurain didn't do them.mij03-11-2026
- I think Jonas would have lost the TDF by 4+ minutes (at the least) and might not have even been in the top 3. Too much talent in the younger riders to say anyone not named Pogačar would have been top 3md197503-11-2026
- this is just stupid. you already have 23%, gravel is over the topabstractengineer03-11-2026
- There was once a time when Lance was supremely popular and he used his artificial "It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life" persona to lead his mob in going after Greg. There was no one Lance did not abuse in protecting his phony hero image. Lance promoted himself as a divine megastar and he let down millions of cancer victims and gullible devotees who clung far too long to the charade. Lance is the epitome of a corrupt person and because of his power, many around him, including business enterprises, succumbed to the evil. All who got in Armstrong's way were mercilessly attacked by him and his minions. This remarkably continues today with a new generation. LeMond was a number one enemy and paid a huge price. Who do you think slandered who?Yepperoni03-11-2026
- You despise him because he calls out the truth....OK clown !frieders303-11-2026
- JV is really slighting himself with not doing the 1 dayers.. 🤷
leedorney02-11-2026 - Watch the interview on youtube. I don't speak French. I do speak English and Spanish and you can hear it in his voice. Years ago LeMond had real personal problems I imagine in no small part because of Armstrong. then Armstrong goes round "full blast" re: LeMond having drinking and drug problems. The same way Andreu was expelled from mainstream cycling so was LeMond. On the positive side the clips of the ride and chatting with old teammates and was good. To seemed like a fun day and experience and good reason brush up his French.atom02-11-2026
- and another no-news article around the ‚2 tokyo jogging rounds‘ headline, this time spiced with some days old ‚news‘ that the LA and japan vacation trips come during or after the tdf route release. i am getting more and more annoyed by this time-stealing no-news crap. but who am i to complain? nobody forces me to come back for more ‚news‘ day after day …Ketterechts02-11-2026
- It would likely be a very steep section of 4.1 km, not changing the average gradient considerably, with the climb remaining 10.1 km at 11.8%. It would reach 20% on the gravel. It would start 1.6 km in, and finish with 4.2 km left to climb (before the short final descent)
Rafionain-Glas02-11-2026
Loading
1 Comments