Mathieu van der Poel is on his way to cyclocross. After picking up the CX bike very recently and trying out new equipment, the Dutchman is officially coming back to racing at the Hulst World Cup this Sunday.
Dutch national team coach Gerben de Knegt has revealed the decision, talking about the former World Champion's comeback to the discipline where he's been the most successful. "I think we are all curious about Mathieu's return to the field. That certainly also applies to Mathieu himself. As a cyclo-cross rider you often need some time to pick up the technical skills at your first cross, but I am confident that Mathieu will soon get that routine back," he said.
As it had been rumoured several weeks ago when the race organizer of the Hulst Cross said the 'big three' (Wout van Aert, Mathieu van der Poel and Tom Pidcock) would be present. Wout van Aert will however resume racing at the Antwerp World Cup the following week, whilst van der Poel will make his debut closer to home.
Tom Pidcock has debuted his rainbow jersey this weekend, notably riding into a close second place in Overijse despite several accountsnof bad luck. "Last weekend you also saw with Tom Pidcock that men of this caliber quickly make that adjustment," de Knegt continued, assuring that van der Poel should also quickly reach his best results.
"The course in Hulst should certainly suit Mathieu, although we have to wait and see whether the weather will affect the surface there. But if that circuit is like in recent years, there are nice descents, some running sections and some fast parts. That is certainly something where Mathieu feels at home. I'm looking forward to Sunday," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 0visitors 0
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
- Me too!!!!!Occam10-11-2026
- they can sign any 100 of top riders today but Pogi will win over Remco any time at the TDF unless something goes wrongabstractengineer10-11-2026
- the time for a GC rider to retire is when they cannot win stages, or have a significant level drop like from winner/podium into top 5/10 consistently. Roglic is still competitive and Froome raced even though he became pack fodder.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- He should be in a different team. It was detrimental. For them it does not matter if he does not develop. He should have gone to a team where they need him to succeed.abstractengineer10-11-2026
- Technically it is "strictly forbidden to deviate from the lane they selected when launching into the sprint and, in so doing, endangering others". But: 1. Marie did not endangered anyone. 2. Above rule 2.3.036 is a Road Cycling rule not CX. 3. In Cyclocross we have only not well defined "irregular sprint" without description what would that mean. But even if you use 2.3.036 for CX it is still wrongly applied rule.averagecyclist10-11-2026
- Technically, leedorney is correct. There was a deviation. It was just a very questionable call to disqualify Marie from the victory, especially since she most likely would have won regardless of it..
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - You're WRONG!!! ... Capish?PogiSloFans10-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment