Mathieu van der Poel is to race 11 cyclocross races this season, beginning with the Zonhoven World Cup on Sunday 22 December, and ending with the World Championships in Liévin, France, on 2 February, it was introduced on Friday.
That is the bottom variety of CX occasions the six-time world champion has ever accomplished in a season, aside from 2021/22, when he was affected by damage. Final yr, Van der Poel raced 14 instances, concluding with victory on the World Championships in Tabor.
In a press launch from Alpecin-Deceuninck, the Dutchman defined: “After cautious consideration and discussions with the workforce administration and efficiency workers, I made a decision on a stable schedule of races. A extra compact program of, say, two World Cup races mixed with the World Championships was an alternative choice, however I believe it makes extra sense to do a extra intensive bundle of races.”
“As soon as that call was made, I rapidly mapped out the races I wished to incorporate. And sure, I’m lucky to have the liberty to decide on the races I get pleasure from most. It’s no coincidence that with Zonhoven, Mol and Koksijde there are a number of typical sand races on the menu.”
He’s aiming for a seventh world title, which might make him the joint-record holder.
“The seventh world title, after all,” he stated of his ambitions. “It’s the solely factor I nonetheless have to realize in CX: this distinctive report of Erik De Vlaeminck. This aspiration has been a driving pressure in shaping my dedication to this winter’s cyclocross season. The World Championship[s] in Liévin is the one actual purpose, though I hope to battle for victory in all the opposite races I participate in. However we’ll see how I do within the first weeks. As I stated, the height might be a bit later this yr.”
Final season Van der Poel gained all however one of many races he took half in, so it will likely be attention-grabbing to see how he shapes up towards his rivals this yr. The 2 World Cups this season have been gained by Eli Iserbyt and Michael Vanthourenhout in his absence, and the X2O and Superprestige competitions are led by Lars van der Haar.
Van der Poel would be the first of the CX ‘massive three’ to return to competitors, with the probability of Wout van Aert and Tom Pidcock racing nonetheless unknown.
Mathieu van der Poel’s CX schedule
– Zonhoven World Cup 22/12
– Mol Superprestige 23/12
– Gavere World Cup 26/12
– Loenhout Precise 27/12
– Besançon World Cup 29/12
– Baal X2O Trofee 01/01
– Koksijde X2O Trofee 03/01
– Dendermonde World Cup 05/01
– Maasmechelen World Cup 25/01
– Hoogerheide World Cup 26/01
– Liévin World Championships 02/02
