While Wout van Aert is still recovering from the severe crash he had in the Vuelta a España, Mathieu van der Poel is recovering from a long and tough racing season. As a result, it’s uncertain what their winter will look like: will they get back on the cyclo-cross bike, and if so, how often? Niels Albert is convinced that they won’t be able to resist the temptation.
The two-time cyclocross world champion believes that the two rivals will indeed return to cyclo-cross. "Mathieu might race a little less," he speculates in an interview with HLN . "Wout definitely will. I see him coming back strong after his crash in the Vuelta and his rehabilitation. It’s impressive how, after such a ‘stupid’ setback—these things keep haunting him—he always finds the mental strength to motivate himself and fight back. 85% of people would have thrown in the towel by now."
According to the 38-year-old Belgian, their love for the sport will ensure that the Dutchman and the Belgian will absolutely get back on the bike this winter. "Both of them love cyclo-cross. It fits perfectly into their system. One hour of intense, pure interval training." Looking ahead to the 2025 spring classics, Albert believes Van der Poel and Van Aert will continue to race cyclo-cross. "Short, sharp turns, twists, pushing through, pulling, and sprinting: there’s no better training for the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix. A Flemish classic is really just one long cyclo-cross race." Philip Roodhooft, team manager of Alpecin-Deceuninck […]
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