{"id":197745,"date":"2025-01-27T13:48:26","date_gmt":"2025-01-27T13:48:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=197745"},"modified":"2025-01-31T09:21:39","modified_gmt":"2025-01-31T09:21:39","slug":"van-aert-to-ride-cyclo-cross-worlds-after-van-der-poel-scores-crushing-weekend-double","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2025\/01\/27\/van-aert-to-ride-cyclo-cross-worlds-after-van-der-poel-scores-crushing-weekend-double\/","title":{"rendered":"Van Aert to Ride Cyclo-Cross Worlds After van der Poel Scores Crushing Weekend Double"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cyclo-cross fans expecting a World Championship walkover after watching Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) make mincemeat of the opposition in two World Cup races over the weekend were probably delighted to hear that the Dutchman\u2019s eternal rival, Wout van Aert (Visma\u2013Lease a Bike), had changed his mind and would ride in next weekend\u2019s World Championships after all.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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One can understand the relief felt by many fans at the prospect of an actual challenge in the French town of Li\u00e9vin to the six-time world champion\u2019s dominance. The weekend\u2019s races were the last two of the World Cup calendar and the suspense lasted all of one lap and a half in Saturday\u2019s race in Maasmechelen, Belgium, and half a lap on Sunday in Hoogerheide, the Netherlands.<\/p>\n

In the end, van der Poel had won by 1:14 on Saturday and by 1:42 on Sunday. As the French ironically put it, \u201cIt wasn\u2019t a photo finish.\u201d However, a rider other than van der Poel did take home a big prize, and that was the Belgian Michael Vanthourenhout (Pauwels Sauzen\u2013Cibel Clementines) who won the first World Cup title of his career. His 281 points over the 11-race series (one race was cancelled due to stormy weather) beat the second-place Toon Aerts (Deschacht-Hens-FSP) by 40 points. A third Belgian, Joran Wyseure (Crelan\u2013Corendon), who finished fifth on Sunday, completed the World Cup podium with 205 points.<\/p>\n

Vanthourenhout was obviously delighted with the title but admitted he was no match for van der Poel. \u201cI went to follow him, but it wasn\u2019t possible today,\u201d he said after Sunday\u2019s race. \u201cWhen he went, I wanted to ride towards him, but you could see straight away that he was much too strong.\u201d<\/p>\n

Though he rode in only five of the 11 World Cup races, van der Poel finished fourth in the final World Cup standings, with 200 points, as he won all of those races. And have I already mentioned that he won each of the seven cyclo-cross races he rode in this season? He would have won more if he hadn\u2019t fractured a rib on December 27 in the Exact Cross race at Loenhout,<\/a> which he won. Because the injury hadn\u2019t seemed serious, he rode two days later in the World Cup race in Besan\u00e7on<\/a>, which he also won, of course. Then they scanned and found the break.<\/p>\n

He told Wielerflits<\/a> after Saturday\u2019s race that the injury hadn\u2019t totally healed yet, but that this wasn\u2019t bad at all. \u201cI still felt it, but maybe that was good so that I didn’t think too much about my legs,\u201d van der Poel said. \u201cI’m happy. I enjoyed this race. It was super beautiful, also with the audience. It was a real cross today.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A post shared by Alpecin-Deceuninck (@alpecindeceuninck)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n