Mathieu Van Der Poel has been kicking it off at the Italian Grand Tour while being the leader of Alpecin-Fenix. He has his goals straight and wants to focus entirely on road racing despite the fact that he is multi-disciplined and that the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup started last month.
Just because he is focusing on road racing does not mean that he has left mountain biking behind, he will also be pursuing that. In fact, he will be turning over to mountain biking in 2023 to prepare for the Olympic Games in 2024. If everything goes well, he will be able to use his tactics well enough at the Olympics.
Let’s take a look at this post from Van Der Poel’s Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
In an interview with Wielerflits, he said:
I’m taking a kind of sabbatical year because my road program is very busy. In 2023 it is the intention to get back into the mountain bike routine. Then I want to work towards the Olympic Games in Paris.
Since his unfortunate tumble in Japan last year, Van Der Poel has not participated in Mountain Biking. He even had to abandon the Olympic Games because of his fall. Now that he has recovered, it is time to make a grand comeback, as he did with road racing this year.
Van Der Poel’s original plan was to return back to racing in September of last year but had to delay because of a knee injury. During the CX season, his pain resurfaced and then he had to leave the season entirely. After a successful recovery, Van Der Poel made his debut at the Milan-San Remo in March, and that was enough to rile up the audience.
Since his debut, he has only given amazing performances, he will complete the Giro and after that, he has aimed for the Tour de France in July. Since it leaves him very little time to shift various disciplines, Van Der Poel will be focusing on road racing for now. This does not mean he won’t be in top condition or form for mountain biking or the Olympic Games in 2024. The Dutchman is known for surprising everyone!
View this post on Instagram
Also Read: Mark Cavendish Wins Stage 3 Of Giro D’Italia
Featured Image Via YouTube/Cycling Pro Net
