Mathieu van der Poel suspends his cross season
Returning back pain may cause reigning champ to miss Fayetteville worlds
Mathieu van der Poel’s cyclocross season is just getting started, but it may be over already. His Alpecin-Fenix team announced its star is would not start at Azencross in Loenhout or at the following World Cup in Hulst.
The reigning world champion only made his highly anticipated return to the mud of World Cup cyclocross in Dendermonde on Boxing Day. That race was dominated by van der Poels career rival, Wout van Aert. The following day, van der Poel DNF’d a Superprestige race in Heusden-Zolder, Belgium. That race was, again, won by van Aert.
Van der Poel withdrew from Heusden-Zolder due to back pain, according to Alpecin-Fenix. A medical exam the following day revealed swelling on the Dutch superstar’s spine. The return of MvdP’s back problems puts his cyclocross season on hold. The will not start in Loenhout or Hulst for sure.
“It’s frustrating, but it is what it is. The problem has been there for some time, and I’m somewhat relieved that there is an identifiable cause that can be remedied with extra rest and treatment,” van der Poel is quoted in the team announcement. “Everyone knows that the World Championships in the U.S. is the first big goal of 2022, but it is certainly not the only or the last one.”
Whether he makes it back on the bike before world championships remains to be seen.
Fayetteville or busted
While van der Poel calls 2022 world championships, which land at Fayetteville, U.S.A. early in the new year, his “first big goal” for the year, his participation is not yet certain. The Dutch rider, whose season was marred by injuries from his crash in the Tokyo Olympic mountain bike race and then a training crash, is clear that he won’t put his health in jeopardy just to participate in worlds.
“I want to fully recover first, without time pressure so that I can use my full possibilities. I will therefore only resume competition when I’m completely ready. If I make it to the World’s, that’s all the better. If it’s not the case, I’ll be looking forward to spring on the road.”
If van der Poel does manage to make it back for Fayetteville, he will be fighting for his fifth cyclocross world championships title. The Dutchman is the reigning world champ after his victory in Ostend, Belgium at 2021 worlds.
If the Dutch star does not return before Fayetteville, it will be the second world championships he’s missed due to injury. Van der Poel sat out XCO worlds in Val di Sole due to his Tokyo crash.
