"It's cool that I can immediately compete for the medals" - Puck Pieterse looks forwards to her first Olympic start
Mountain Bike
Puck Pieterse will enter the Sunday's mountain bike event in Paris as one of the big favourites to bring back home to Netherlands at least a medal, if not gold. However against the strong French ladies on a home field, it won't be easy for the multitalented 22-year-old.
"It’s special that I’m the favorite right away," says Pieterse at WielerFlits. "I feel a little bit of extra pressure in that respect, maybe. But it’s really cool that if you participate, I can immediately compete for the medals. You always have to let it happen a little bit. It is and remains a single competition. Which makes it nice, but a lot can also go wrong."
Pieterse won four World Cup races in the run-up to the Games. "That certainly gives self-confidence. Of course, it is always a snapshot, you never know what the rest has trained or done. Having already won is certainly a good feeling when you go into a competition like this."
How does the Dutch woman view the course in Paris? "There are some tricky points. The top layer is gravel, which makes it slippery in some corners. You have to be extra careful in that respect. It would be nice if the race could be determined on the climbs. But I definitely think that if you get the rhythm right here, you can also make up a lot of time on the sections in between."
Regarding the organisation and vibe within the Olympic village, she compares the event to last year's super-championships in Glasgow: "I really enjoy being here. At the Super World Championships in Glasgow we were only with the mountain bikers, now we were in the hotel with the other cyclists as well. We are a bit more isolated from the other Olympic athletes."
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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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- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
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- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
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