Van der Poel, van Empel and Pieterse lead Dutch ambitions at Antwerp World Cup

The KNWU has announced its selection for the UCI World Cup Antwerpen. Mathieu van der Poel will lead the men's team. Fem van Empel and Puck Pieterse are the main spearheads for the women’s team.

It goes without saying that Mathieu van der Poel will be a part of the team, especially after his victory in World Cup Hulst. World Cup Hulst. ‘I was impressed by Mathieu yesterday in Hulst and look forward to seeing him at work again in Antwerp," De Knegt said. Lars van der Haar will also be part of the squad.

But a few important riders are missing from the list. Pim Ronhaar himself has chosen to skip the cross in Antwerp. Joris Nieuwenhuis will have to miss out on this World Cup as he couldn’t make it in the top 50 rankings. Annemarie Worst is still recovering from her injury while Yara Kastelijn is in Spain for a training camp. Marianne Vos has also decided to skip Antwerp.

Dutch team for Antwerp World Cup Elite women - Lucinda Brand, Fem van Empel, Denise Betsema, Puck Pieterse, Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado, Inge van der Heijden, Shirin van Anrooij, Manon Bakker, Aniek van Alphen, Maud Kaptheijns, Leonie Bentveld, Lauren Molengraaf and Iris Offerein.

Dutch team for World Cup Antwerp Elite men - Lars van der Haar, Corné van Kessel, Mees Hendrikx, Ryan Kamp, Stan Godrie, Luke Verburg, Mathieu van der Poel, Tibor del Grosso and David Haverdings.