Van der Poel preferred to race against Van Aert and Stuyven: “Possibly even more pressure on my shoulders. That doesn’t make it any easier” | Tour of Flanders 2024

The favorite due to the literal disappearance of Wout van Aert: Mathieu van der Poel. The Dutchman won in 2020 and last year. “I like the Tour,” he says via a press release from Alpecin-Deceuninck. “It’s a race with a lot of intervals – the climbs follow each other in quick succession. My victory in the E3 Saxo Classic gave me exactly the confidence I needed for what comes next. Of course I would also have liked to win Gent-Wevelgem, but Mads Pedersen was simply stronger. Not entirely illogical. In any case, I can look back positively.”

I have never made it a secret that I prefer to be at the start with all the top riders. So that we can fight with an open mind.

Mathieu van der Poel

Of course ‘MVDP’ also talks about the crash in Dwars door Vlaanderen. As a result, Van Aert and Stuyven, among others, suddenly saw their remaining spring go up in smoke. “This is a great shame for the Tour. But even more so for Wout and Jasper themselves. You spend months preparing for the two most important matches. And then suddenly you find yourself on the sidelines. You really wouldn’t wish that on anyone. I have never made it a secret that I prefer to be at the start with all the top riders. And we can fight with an open mind. It is difficult to predict to what extent the absence of Stuyven and Van Aert will affect me. But maybe it puts even more pressure on my shoulders. And that certainly doesn’t make it any easier. On the other hand, Visma-Lease a Bike and Lidl-Trek remain two strong blocks. Even without Van Aert and Stuyven. There is still Jorgenson, Benoot, Pedersen, …”

But Van der Poel just wants to focus on himself. Like he always does. “I’m just going to do my thing. My approach? I can’t say much about that in advance. Everything depends on how the price goes. Of course I will not shy away from my responsibility. But like I said: there is also Visma-Lease a Bike and Lidl-Trek.”