World Cup leader Vanthourenhout skips another X2O Trofee round - Belgian won't race against van der Poel in Koksijde

Michael Vanthourenhout has been having a great run in the cyclocross World Cup and so when he fell ill right before new year, the Belgian rider and Pauwels Sauzen - Cibel Clementines have decided to let go of the X2O Badkamers Trofee classification as he is now also set to miss the Duinencross Koksijde where Mathieu van der Poel should make a comeback.

Team manager Jurgen Mettepenningen told Sporza that “we have decided to give him two races off. Before Diegem he was already complaining about his throat. Racing in Baal was almost impossible". Abandoning the race in Diegem virtually makes it impossible for him to win the cup, and his DNS at the GP Sven Nys means the same for the X2O Badkamers Trofee.

“He will not be riding in Koksijde either. He is aiming for the weekend with Gullegem and Dendermonde. It wouldn’t have been wise to race with a sore throat. We decided to give him two races off.” He will indeed race the Superprestige event this Saturday, but on paper it's full focus on the World Cup now where he still leads over Toon Aerts, but the threat of Mathieu van der Poel looms not too far away.

“He can go all out in Dendermonde. It is important to maintain his position in the classification," Mettepenningen concluded.