"With Mathieu you try to go with him then, but he and Wout can do that several laps" - Pim Ronhaar blows him up in chase of van Aert & van der Poel in Benidorm
Cyclocross
For the first time since Boxing Day, Pim Ronhaar wasn't in the mix for the podium, finishing 16th at Sunday's UCI World Cup in Benidorm.
"Maybe I blew up a bit at the start, but normally it's something I should be able to do if it's a mud cross. We are not really made for those fast rounds, I already talked about that with Joris Nieuwenhuis and Lars van der Haar," the 22-year-old Dutchman reflected post-race. "Waterloo, for example, is also a fast lap, but there is flow in it. Here it's more like constantly standing still in those corners, I still need to train on that."
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Wout van Aert was victorious on the day, ending the season-long winning streak of Mathieu van der Poel in the process. Ronhaar is just in awe of both of his rivals. "If you blow yourself up... then you only face it the next lap," he says of trying to keep pace with the superstar duo.
"With Mathieu you try to go with him then, but he and Wout can do that several laps in a row and we can do that for two or three laps at most," Ronhaar assesses. "For the rest I didn't get much out of it, because I was just in my slump at the time."
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.
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- He should have been allowed to go to Movistar. Right now both arent a good fit for each other and are just wasting each other's time and effortabstractengineer08-11-2026
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Rafionain-Glas08-11-2026 - i did not see it. was the relegation justified or an overly hard decision? and don‘t cross riders deviate from straight lines all the time? bumping into each others when they cut corners, etc … why being more strict with the rules on the finish sprint?Ketterechts08-11-2026
- seems like we are advertising the website with pointless comments…Ketterechts08-11-2026
- So?Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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Front24208-11-2026 - On a positive note, you maybe notice turning this topic into a discussion has the benefit of eliminating certain participants who do not see how they can turn it back to their sole interest ;-)Jumpyjohn08-11-2026
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