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Mathieu van der Poel had a nasty crash…and still got second at the World Cup

A tough rider in a tough race

December 29, 2021
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The reigning cyclocross world champion barely got started this year before he pulled the plug. One of the greatest riders on both the road, and the dirt, Mathieu van der Poel’s cyclocross season 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.

Mathieu van der Poel’s suspends his cross season

The son of Adrie made his highly anticipated return to the mud of World Cup cyclocross in Dendermonde on Boxing Day. That race was dominated by van der Poel’s career rival, Wout van Aert. The following day, van der Poel quit at 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. He will not start in Loenhout or Hulst for sure.

Van der Poel’s ProTeam Alpecin-Fenix will receive automatic WorldTour race spots again in 2022

For ‘cross fans, it’s a bummer. The highly anticipated rivalry between van Aert and Mvdp was a long time coming, given that they took a little break after some incredible road seasons for both of them. Van Aert took a couple of stages at the Tour, and van der Poel won an emotional stage that was dedicated to his recently deceased grandfather, the legendary Raymond Poulidor.

Keep this in mind: even when the Dutch rider is suffering from a sore back, and has a rough fall like below, he still finished second to van Aert. Absolute legend.