Ever since Mathieu van der Poel abandoned the Tour de France midway, he has been missing in action. Fans have been looking up every tabloid to see if there has been any word from their favorite Alpecin-Deceuninck rider. Well, the wait is over as the team confirmed that Van Der Poel is back in the game and will be seen at the Druivenkoers-Overijse.
The team took to their social media on 23rd August, Tuesday to make a special announcement:
Look who’ll be back in action this Wednesday, We’ve got a strong and motivated team for the Druivenkoers Overijse!
🇧🇪 #VDO22
Look who’s back! 😍
We’ve got a strong and motivated team for the #Druivenkoers in Overijse this Wednesday. ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/WGtgZ3ogwL
— Alpecin-Deceuninck Cycling Team (@AlpecinDCK) August 22, 2022
Van Der Poel will be participating in the Belgium race on August 24. The 192km is a vast spread track but Van Der Poel has put behind the ghost of the tour de France and is ready to take on the challenge. The Dutch rider believed that training at the altitude camp had messed up his recovery process, causing him troubles at The Tour. Nonetheless, He wants to be more ready than ever to face the UCI Road World Championships in Australia.
Van Der Poel raced a total of 10 stages at the Tour de France. After which, the event started to take a toll on his mental and physical health. Hence, he abandoned it on stage 11. Although he was seen at the post-Tour criteriums but has been absent from the events ever since July.
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The upcoming World Championships are a challenge on their own, with multiple short climbs and far-stretched tracks. The list of competitors includes some renowned names in the cycling world like Wout van Aert (Belgium), Julian Alaphilippe (France), and the likes. Julian Alaphilippe was the winner of the last two titles while Wout van Aert is a tough competitor.
Van der Poel suffered from a back injury, which has caused hindrance in his plans. He wanted to take more part in road racing this season instead of choosing mountain biking. At the Giro, Van der Poel won the opening stage as well as taking wins on three more stages. He then headed to the tour de France, but to everyone’s amazement, he could not finish what he started.
Nevertheless, he has come a long way from the Tour, and now all his focus is on the World Championships. He will be joined at the Druivenkoers-Overijse by his teammates namely:
- Dries De Bondt
- Senne Leysen
- Silvan Dillier
- Kristian Sbaragli
- Julien Vermote
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Featured Imag Via YouTube/ Zwift
