Mathieu van der Poel is preparing to run his third Tour de France, but the first with an open mind as he himself said. Once he had the Olympics in mountain biking in his head, once he had arrived there from Tour of Italy and so he was already tired. Now the Grande Boucle is expecting a 100 percent VdP and he clearly wants to be at his best.
“Poisoned” tooth
The Dutchman was disappointed with the national championship. He had tried with that mix of madness and strength that distinguishes him, but the Jumbo Visma he marked him well and in the end Mathieu had to give up: "only" third.
«Other teams – said after the race, the athlete of theAlpecin-Deceuninck – they showed up at the start with many more riders, which made the race difficult for me. I felt pretty good all day. I'm also coping better with the heat, but losing like this is frustrating."
«For my part, however, I think I did everything well. At some point you have to start gambling and think about winning. Dylan (Van Baarle(ed.) He's a true champion, Jumbo-Visma did well to hire him. Now I need a few days of recovery and then I'll go to the Tour."
And with his manager and sporting director, Christoph Roodhooft We spoke specifically with the Tour de France in mind. What can we expect from VdP?
Christoph, how do you rate Mathieu VdP's performance at the Belgium Tour? In an interview after the Tour, was there even talk of Mathieu's wattage being among his best ever?
Mathieu has indeed reached a high level in the Baloise Belgium Tour. After a short break following Paris-Roubaix, he worked to get in shape for this period thanks to a training camp in Spain, first, and a training camp with the team in La Plagne, later.
With the aim of the Tour…
Focusing on the Tour but also on the Road World Championships. In the meantime, we can say that he is ready for the Tour.
The Grande Boucle that's about to begin includes many mixed, hilly stages... have you already identified some?
There are a number of stages where Mathieu can perform well, using his skills. I think both the intermediate stages and those with a… punchy finish, so to speak. But before we mention this or that stage, let's see how his form develops over the three weeks. Mathieu will also try to help Jasper Phillipsen in sprints.
Last year, the pink jersey at the Giro, which started from abroad, was worn; this year, the Tour also starts beyond the border: is the yellow jersey in the first stage a concrete goal?
We'll see how the race unfolds in Bilbao. It's a stage suited to both fighters and GC riders. It's difficult to make any predictions ahead of time. But if the opportunity arises, Mathieu certainly won't let it slip away.
Mathieu said he'll be at the Tour for the first time with a "clear mind." How important is this factor for you?
Indeed, he has an open mind. But I don't think that's the most important factor. Mathieu said that He wants to finish the Tour for the first time in his career. But at the same time, he's racing "with the World Championship in the back of his mind."».
So you're thinking about the World Cup. Could all this increase the pressure?
Regarding pressure: Mathieu starts every race with the pressure of someone who has to try to win. He can always do it, but that has nothing to do with having a free mind.
The Tour, the World Championships, the yellow jersey… and could the green one be a goal?
No, he has already said on several occasions that the green jersey is not a goal for him. If anything, this is a goal Jasper Philipsen can aspire to… if all goes well.
From Paris to Glasgow
The passage in which Roodhooft also talks about the World Championships is central, that all things considered, yes, the Tour is the objective, but VdP also goes there thinking about the world championship race in Scotland. Perhaps the rainbow goal will lead him to ride a little less Garibaldi-style than he did at last year's Giro d'Italia.
Energy will need to be carefully measured. The Grande Boucle route is particularly demanding this year. And between the grand finale in Paris (July 23) and the World Championships (August 6), there are just two weeks to spare.
Roodhooft himself, in an interview given to the Dutch journalist Raymond Kerckhoffs, had said: "There's no chance of improvement during that period. After the Tour, Mathieu will probably just focus on recovery."
We'll see how things go. But Knowing that a VdP was at its best ever at the Tour of Belgium already makes your hair stand on end.
