19/10/2023

Dutch MTB coach knows it will be tough choice for Mathieu van der Poel at Olympics: "He also has a serious chance of winning the road race"

The UCI has recently announced the calendar for the Mountain Biking World Cup. The planning teams of Alpecin-Deceuninck and the KNWU can begin to put together the puzzle with Mathieu van der Poel towards 2024. The Dutchman has had an Olympic dream for several years and he can make it come true next year. In de Leiderstrui spoke extensively about the Paris puzzle with the Dutch MTB national coach Gerben de Knegt..

At the previous Tokyo Games, the Dutchman opted for the mountain bike, where the out-come is well-known. A choice problem is already arising towards 2024: he can aim for Olympic success both on the mountain bike and on the road, which is of course something both national coaches De Knegt and Koos Moerenhout are interested in.

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"The Tour is an important part of the entire preparation," De Knegt believes. Next year it will be held from June 29 to July 21, while the road race at the Games is scheduled for August 3. The mountain bike race is on July 29. "He also has a serious chance of winning the road race, and that is a week after the mountain bike race. And that is another week after the Tour...," knows De Knegt.

"That last one is quite something. Whether it is possible depends on the preparation. If he does the Tour and the road race two weeks later, you almost have a copy-paste of this year's World Cup preparations," De Knegt says. "I can totally agree with that, but doing the Tour and then getting on that mountain bike for two or three days and exploring the course is a difficult one. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it is difficult."