"It is something I think about, yes" - Can Mathieu van der Poel end cyclocross career in 1 month?

We could have Mathieu van der Poel take on his final cyclocross race within the next few weeks. It's not likely, but it is possible and something the World Champion is considering. If he takes the victory at the Hulst World Championships in early February he will take on the world title records with eight accumulated, in his home country of the Netherlands.

“It is something I think about, yes. I have always said it would be very nice to stop in my own country with the record. For the rest, there would not be much more left for me to achieve in cyclocross," van der Poel said in honest words to Het Laatste Nieuws. Van der Poel has raced for a decade in the discipline that has seen him grow and achieved more success than anyone in modern history. Hence the question of when to stop also emerges. It doesn't seem like he is interested in taking his record into the highest possible number.

With seven already, and without a single doubt the best cyclocross rider in the current men's field, it would be the very definition of leaving on a high. “I always wanted to stop on a high point. If you then finish fifth in Hoogerheide (the 2028 World Championships in the Netherlands, ed.), there will be an aftertaste. I am not saying I assume I will become world champion in Hulst, but then I do have the choice to do it there.”

“We have talked about it internally a few times. It is something I think about, yes. I am not getting any younger," he argues. "Right now I am still at a very high level, but who says that will still be the case in two, three years? I do not know, because I do not have a crystal ball. Otherwise it would be easy, of course.” Above all, he wants to keep the options open. 

However a big part of it is also to see what changes it makes to his performance on the road, where he has also won a lot, but still has more ambitions. “I do not think I absolutely need cyclocross to reach my best level. Certainly not. Maybe without cross it could even be better? If you do not try it, you do not know," he questions.

“I would mainly do it with a view to the road season, yes. To be able to take a bit more rest during the winter. By being able to stay in Spain all winter, for example, and train there. I still really love cyclocross, but there is a lot involved and it takes a lot of energy.” His name will forever be marked to the discipline, but his time with it is uncertain. If the discipline is selected to be in the Winter Olympics in 2030, it could potentially change his line of thinking however.

He does admit that most likely he would miss the discipline if the decision was made. “The cyclocross itself, of course. That is still what I love most. And the crowd. I grew up with that atmosphere. We will see. It is certainly not a final decision," he concluded.