"Thibau was the only one who could follow when Mathieu really pushed": Sven Nys praises his son despite defeat in Namur
Cyclocross
Until the Namur World Cup round past weekend, Thibau Nys was the reference point of the on-going cyclocross season. But on Sunday he countered an even greater star of the discipline - seven-time world champion Mathieu van der Poel. Despite this being his first competitive start this winter, the Dutchman didn't grant his younger rival more than a sliver of hope as he cruised towards his sixth triumph under the citadelle in Namur.
Although at no point there was really a doubt about the winner in Namur, the race was quite close between the two men. Despite few mistakes along the way, Van der Poel eventually created the difference as expected, but it wasn't until the race's apex.
"For a moment, it looked like it was going to be a battle to the finish, but Thibau has no one to blame," Thibau's father Sven Nys told WielerFlits after the two have already discussed the race internally.
"He made a small mistake in a corner. That can happen; it's part of cyclocross. But that means he has to do something that is no longer feasible in such a final. It would have been amazing if he'd just been able to follow. That's what we were hoping for."
Weight plays in Thibau's favor
For vast majority of the race, Thibau was the only rider able to counter Van der Poel's accelerations, escpecially uphill. "Weight plays a major role there," Sven explains that the short efforts are really his son's cup of tea.
"That's become his trademark in recent years. You see that on the road too. He really shines in dry conditions. That's why his chances are much greater here than in other cyclocross races."
Mathieu van der Poel came victorious in the 4th round of 2025/26 World Cup
No hope to beat MVDP on horizon
Thibau was ultimately less than 10 seconds shy off the man wearing rainbow, however in his post-race comments, teammate Lars van der Haar (4th in Namur) suggested that this was Thibau's one and only chance to beat Van der Poel this winter. And there's certainly some weight to his words since it's not rare for the Dutchman to win by more than a minute. This might've been the most human-like version we will have seen this winter then.
Van der Haar and Michael Vanthourenhout were both present in the crunch-time of the race. "When Mathieu really pushed, Thibau was the only one who could follow," he assesses.
Even then, the Baloise Glowi Lions manager Sven Nys nods to the opinion that Thibau can't realistically aim to defeat Van der Poel in their upcoming clashes: "The courses coming up in the coming weeks simply suit Mathieu much better. Think of Antwerp, Koksijde, or Hofstade. They're tailor-made for Mathieu. Beating him there, in the sand... That's not Thibau's specialty anyway."
However the older of Nys tribe doesn't give up entirely as his lists some opportunities for Thibau to shine again: "If we ever want to get closer [to Mathieu], it will be in Gavere or Baal. Those are races where it's still possible, although it depends on the conditions. We're also working towards the Belgian championships in Beringen."
Ondrej ZhasilCycling Journalist
Ondřej Zhasil is a cycling journalist at CyclingUpToDate and has been part of the team since 2023. He is based in Ostrava, the third-largest city in the Czech Republic, and covers professional cycling across the main UCI competitions, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España. A key focus of his work is startlist analysis and pre-race coverage, where he examines team selections, rider line-ups, and tactical scenarios ahead of major events.
Alongside WorldTour coverage, Ondřej has developed specific expertise in junior cycling and in racing across East Asia, including competitions in China and Japan. He also maintains a broad working knowledge of other disciplines and levels, including cyclocross, while continuing to expand his understanding of mountain bike racing.
Ondřej holds a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Physics, which supports his analytical, data-driven approach to performance and race analysis. In his reporting, he regularly uses ProCyclingStats for results, statistics, and historical context. He places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles promptly when new, verified information becomes available.
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- More to the point, it isn't his remaining goal.Renz08-11-2026
- lol yeahmij08-11-2026
- I know, their headlines can be so misleading. Pidcock had a great season with 5 wins. and some solid 2nds. no reason to take away from that with a fake headline.mij08-11-2026
- You can clearly see the the posture change from slightly sitting to again out of the saddle while changing of gears in the video of the sprintabstractengineer08-11-2026
- He has already beaten Pogi twice in the TDF. the achievement is over. He cannot beat Pogi now and he only has a few years left at the top. Win Giro and compete in the TDF, maximise palmares.abstractengineer08-11-2026
- Just looked again at the photo. Yeah I stand by that. If MS had fallen over in Brands direction I don’t even think she would have hit her. You must be a UCI race commissioner. I’ll be sure to check my sock height should I ever see you on a ride. Looks like everyone else on here sees what I see.mij08-11-2026
- I said looking at the photo it doesn’t appear she deviated. Chill out, not stating my word is the final judgement. Just commenting that based on the photo I don’t see it. And BTW the Dutch coach even said she didn’t impede her.mij08-11-2026
- Blah Blah Blah !frieders308-11-2026
- MS said she was changing gears so that caused her slight deviation. Nothing was intentional.frieders308-11-2026
- How can you use a photo post incident to judge the incident itself (which is not hard to find if you’re prepared to invest the same amount of time in searching as writing that comment? It’s harsh but technically right even though this or worse is not always sanctioned in every race. The two things that went against MS (who unfortunately for her would still have won without making her mistake) are that it was not a bunch sprint where there could have been an overlooked incident or mitigating circumstances explaining a deviation. Everything was focused on just those 2, Schreiber was riding beautifully balanced which made her sudden deviation look unnatural stroke as if it could have been in some part intentional whilst she was slowly drifting ever closer towards the barrier to a point that would have reached obstruction level. In her defence, it might have been the realisation she was heading towards that that made her react suddenly and caused the deviation involuntarily. In any case, congratulations to her for the ride of her life, in people’s minds she will be credited for it.Jumpyjohn07-11-2026
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