Mathieu van der Poel's injury absence continues as he withdraws from Dendermonde due to rib problems
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Updated 03/01/2025 at 18:29 GMT
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Mathieu van der Poel's dominant winning streak in this winter's cyclo-cross season has been put on ice, as the Dutchman has pulled out of the X20 Badkamers Trofee on Friday and the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup event in Dendermonde. The 29-year-old has been suffering from rib problems since sliding into a pole in Loenhout, with the pain persisting in Besancon. Van der Poel still won both races.
'Spellbinding' - Van der Poel wins fifth straight race after storming Besancon World Cup
Video credit: TNT Sports
Mathieu van der Poel has withdrawn from the UCI Cyclo-cross World Cup event in Dendermonde due to continued discomfort in his ribs, having already pulled out of the X20 Badkamers Trofee in Koksijde.
The 29-year-old sustained the injury at Azencross in Loenhout on December 27, when a flat tyre resulted in a slide and his midriff hit a pole.
The Alpecin-Deceuninck rider went on to win the race, as well as the UCI World Cup in Besancon two days later, taking his winning streak to five this winter.
His team announced that Van der Poel would not continue his superb form on Friday.
"Mathieu van der Poel’s rib problems persist, causing significant discomfort, particularly on heavier terrain. As a result, he will not participate in tomorrow’s X20 Badkamers Trofee in Koksijde," read the Alpecin-Deceuninck post on social media.
The post also revealed that Van der Poel and his team would wait until Saturday to make a decision on if he would compete in Dendermonde.
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CHAOS in Loenhout as Van Aert comes off twice, Van der Poel also crashes but takes victory
Video credit: TNT Sports
However, Alpecin–Deceuninck confirmed that he would miss the World Cup event in a post on social media on Friday evening.
"Mathieu van der Poel forced to skip Dendermonde as well," read the Instagram post.
"Initially, Mathieu van der Poel planned to make a decision by Saturday, but the call came earlier than expected: the World Champion has announced his withdrawal from the Cyclo-cross World Cup round in Dendermonde."
The Dutch rider said he was still experiencing pain in his ribs, which meant there was little point in waiting to make an announcement.
"There’s no point in waiting any longer," Van der Poel said. "I did another test today, and it’s clear that Dendermonde comes too soon. On heavier off-road terrain, I’m still experiencing too much pain in my rib. I have no choice but to remain patient."
Van der Poel's focus will now shift to a training camp in Spain prior to resuming his season - with World Championship glory the target.
"As planned, Mathieu will head to a training camp in Spain after Dendermonde," the team statement continued. "Later this month, he is set to compete in the World Cup races in Maasmechelen and Hoogerheide before making a bid for his seventh world title in Lievin in early February.
"So for now, the rest of his cyclo-cross program remains unaffected."
Koksijde withdrawal 'really disappointing' - Van der Poel
Van der Poel had previously said that his withdrawal from the X20 Badkamers Trofee in Koksijde "was really disappointing".
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"This is really disappointing because Koksijde is one of my favourite races," wrote Van der Poel.
"It’s where I won my first world title, for example. But it’s just too soon."
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'Absolutely pitch perfect' - Van Empel dominates for cyclo-cross victory in Besancon
Video credit: TNT Sports
Alpecin-Deceuninck boss Christoph Roodhooft had previously spoken about the "really annoying" injury, which also caused Van der Poel to miss the Grand Prix Sven Nys on New Year's Day.
"In Loenhout, Mathieu got a flat tyre at one point, after which he slid away. That caused him to hit a pole with his chest. We saw that ourselves, but Mathieu didn’t necessarily say anything about it afterwards," Roodhooft told Wielerflits via Cycling Up To Date.
"He also suffered relatively little from it in Besancon. The day after Besancon he did have some pain. The discomfort was really annoying.
"We'll see how the next few days will go. There will be no medical check-ups. He just hurt himself. This is of course not pleasant for him, but there's nothing we can do about it."
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