Mathieu van der Poel (29) has circled his next big goals on his agenda. The world champion is preparing for the Tour de France and the Olympic road race in Paris. The Dutchman is suitable for mountain biking. “Let’s just say I chose the most logical option,” Van der Poel explains. “And who knows what else is possible in Los Angeles 2028?”
It was set to be a multi-sporting summer for Mathieu van der Poel. Van der Poel is one of the top candidates for the Olympic road race (Saturday, August 3), but he also loves his mountain bike.
This race is scheduled to take place on Monday, July 29, but this race could be very difficult. Especially with the Tour de France (June 29 to July 21) in the support programme.
Van der Poel and his Alpecin-Deceuninck team have now made the decision: MVDP will ride the Tour this summer and then the road race in Paris. The MTB story is placed on the refrigerator.
If I want to fully focus on mountain biking and prepare perfectly, I should start next weekend in Nove Mesto.
Matthew van der Poel
We read in the press release how Van der Poel originally wanted to do his best for mountain biking. Even the road race track was revealed.
“This created a puzzle that was difficult to solve,” he explains. “Only road racing? Only mountain biking? Or both? Whether combined with the Tour de France or not, which I personally consider to be the best possible preparation for the Games.”
Van der Poel cancels mountain biking. “Let’s just say I chose the most logical thing.”
“The first half of the season was very long, with the cyclo-cross season first. After a short break, I resumed training for the spring and continued that campaign until Liège-Bastogne-Liège.”
“If I want to focus fully on mountain biking and prepare perfectly, I have to start next weekend in Nove Mesto, the Czech round of the MTB World Cup.”
Los Angeles 2028
Together, Van der Poel and his team opted for a “slightly longer rest period”. “Then I can prepare for the Tour de France and the Olympic road race without time pressure.”
What about mountain biking? “Who knows what will still be possible in Los Angeles in 2028? That’s still a long time away, but I’ll be at a different stage in my career. Maybe then I can put everything into mountain biking. This year the combination is very difficult.” “.
“The fact that I am currently wearing a rainbow jersey also played an indirect role. It is a special year.”
“As a world champion, I would love to wear this jersey as much as possible. So I would rather not miss the Tour de France. This turned out to be a good preparation last year, towards the World Cup.”
The fact that I am currently wearing a rainbow shirt also played an indirect role. It’s a special year.
Matthew van der Poel
Van der Poel is currently training in Spain. He will not race before the start of the Tour. “I’ll be leaving a week after the rest of our main tour to attend an altitude training camp in La Plagne. After that, I’ll be working on some individual training until the start of the tour in Florence.”
“We have now gained enough experience to know that once I compete, I can get to the right level very quickly.”
“At the Tour, I hope to once again help my teammate Jasper Philipsen in his search for stage wins and a potential green jersey. The aim is to win a stage myself this year.”
“Last year I got sick when I played a number of stages where I had chances. I hope to avoid that in this edition.”
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