Controversial sports director dismisses Van der Poel: ‘That bothers me enormously’

Mathieu van der Poel had another fantastic spring and that once again earned the Dutchman the necessary praise. But not only in the Netherlands and Belgium.

Grandson of Poupou

After all, Van der Poel is also extremely popular in France. Not entirely surprising, of course, when you know that Raymond Poulidor was his grandfather and Corinne Poulidor is Van der Poel’s mother. There is therefore a clear link with France, and that means that he also enjoys a lot of attention and respect among our southern neighbors.

However, according to some, a little too much. Such as for the controversial sports director Jérôme Pineau. After all, this was particularly critical at RMC. “There is something that bothers me enormously. Do you know why no one criticizes Mathieu van der Poel? Because he is Poupou’s grandson,” he believes.

Not critical enough

And Poupou is of course Poulidor’s nickname. Pineau believes that Van der Poel is therefore treated less severely in France. “If he were not Poulidor’s grandson, the songs he performs would not be as highly regarded as they are now.”

“Then that would be assessed more accurately than the performance of someone like Tadej Pogacar. And if Van der Poel does not perform, will it be mentioned? No, because he is Poulidor’s grandson,” said Pineau, who last year accused Jumbo-Visma of mechanical doping. He is himself a former team manager of B&B Hotels-KTM, which will go bankrupt in 2022.