© Sebadelha Julie / ABACA
Matthew van der Poel will be the last of the “Big Three” to enter the field this winter. While Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock will return in early December, the world champion won’t be riding his first cross of the season until mid-December.
Pram Vandikapil
After a three-and-a-half week break, Mathieu van der Poel has been training for a good week. Since it’s been so long since Van der Poel went that long without a bike, his team at Alpecin-Fenix wants to build quietly and the cyclocross world champion will ride a limited 10- to 12-cross program due to his busyness. The road season awaits and the goal is to finish the Tour de France next summer.
Last year, Van der Poel led fifteen passes and started on December 12. This year it will be in a week. Van der Poel wants to lay a solid foundation in November and from 1-10 December he will go to Spain with Alpecin-Fenix in group training. After that, the Dutchman will be ready to race, but the World Cup race in Italy’s Val di Sol on December 12 could be too early. The next big date is the World Cup race at Rucphen in the Netherlands on December 18.
We even have to wait until Christmas time for a first battle between the Big Three. Tom Bidcock dives into the field on December 4th in Boom. Wout van Aert is also planning a comeback during that time. Only Van Aert also goes in group training in December. Jumbo Visma’s forces will gather from December 13 to 21, so that Van Art and Van der Poel avoid each other until after Christmas.
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