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Are you being sarcastic? As in, it's obvious he's going to focus more on mountainbike next year? Because sure we know he needs to fight for a proper place on the start grid of the OS, but there's a difference between riding A LOT of mountainbike races and maybe even skipping big classics like Roubaix
Considering they both rode Roubaix this year, and it worked out great, it seems a bit early to rule out it won't happen again based on that quote alone.
I'm not. I think the first four words I quoted are a nonsensical basis for your inference.
I wouldn't already say Philipsen can go for Roubaix as the leader if MVDP, the better rider, the winner of the last Roubaix, wouldn't make it a target.
I'm still not so sure at all if MvdP will go all out for MTB next season. Competing in Paris means having to score loads of points throughout the season and watering down on the ambitions of his classics season is something the sponsor will not like.
In the end of this interview (in Dutch), he is reserving judgement on whether or not he think this is feasible.
nos.nl
In the end of this interview (in Dutch), he is reserving judgement on whether or not he think this is feasible.
Van der Poel verkent olympisch mountainbikeparcours: 'Gaat nog een flinke puzzel worden'
Mathieu van der Poel liet het EK op de VAM-berg schieten voor het olympische testevent in Parijs op de mountainbike. Van de ene vuilnisbelt naar de andere. En niet alle toppers zijn te spreken over het parcours.
nos.nl
MTB field is ***. He can win those races when he is 35. Road is where it's at now.
Don't you agree??
Don't you agree??
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Not really!! How much MTB do you watch? It would seem not a lot..... The level of ignorance from road fans never fails to surprise.
MTB is cyclo-cross level.
Even ancient Peraud performed there.
The sport simply isn't big enough.
It's way better than gravel where any decent road racer can mop up the field but mtb will be a lot easier for MvdP than road racing.
Well Peraud was even older when he podiumed the TdF, so not a great example.
MTB and Cyclocross are not as deep as the road talent wise, but the top dogs are really good in both.
Yes, but I would also say that is easier to be a contender in MTB as a +30 rider than on the road, especially nowadays, because the body adaptations that occur as someone grows old are more conducive to success in MTB than on the road.
Specially for a powerful guy as VDP, who rides on the basis of high power bursts, as he grows old the natural tendency is for those power numbers being more difficult to obtain and to instead develop more endurance, and I think MTB relies relatively more on endurance (the ability to sustain high heart rates during the entire race, either climbing or going downhill) than the classics on the road.
Putting both Olympic races side to side, what do you think it's more easy? VDP being olympic champion on the road with 29 years and on the MTB with 33 or VDP being olympic champion on the road with 33 years (and we don't even know if Los Angeles route will suit his characteristics as the Paris one does) and on the MTB with 29?
You mean he was older then than he is now? sounds like some suspicious time travel is happening
We've just seen Milan Vader win a WT stage race. It's no wonder he's found his return to racing on the road a whole lot easier than on the mountainbike, where earlier this year he struggled to even follow the pack. The intensity is way higher.
I think for MVDP it will actually also be easier to become Olympic champion on the road than on the mountainbike. On the road he's probably already the overwhelming favourite, haven't looked at the course but I assume it will be a bit like Glasgow.
Not forgetting his back problems.
It's more than likely that MVDP's 2023 Velo d'Or winning road campaign 🙂... is down to him ditching the 3rd discipline, MTB. If he reintroduces MTB next year, I fear it'll end in tears again "Spinal"
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GP_0BhCw2rg
It's more than likely that MVDP's 2023 Velo d'Or winning road campaign 🙂... is down to him ditching the 3rd discipline, MTB. If he reintroduces MTB next year, I fear it'll end in tears again "Spinal"
It's comparable as far as D+ goes, 2888 (Glasgow) and 2777 (Paris). However, it's much less twisty and bendy, it has a lot of long straight roads and only the last +/- 50 kilometers are done on a circuit. Especially the former two make it a completely different race, as all riders spoke of Glasgow as one of the hardest race because of how many bends it had.
That being said, the course hardly matters imo. The Olympic race has become such an anomaly, even more than it already was. Nobody is a favourite in that race, because everyone is. If a group of the correct people/countries get a gap, that race could be done in a span of 5 minutes.
He has a bigger chance to win the MTB one, imo, because if he is the strongest in the race he likely wins.I'm still not so sure at all if MvdP will go all out for MTB next season. Competing in Paris means having to score loads of points throughout the season and watering down on the ambitions of his classics season is something the sponsor will not like.
In the end of this interview (in Dutch), he is reserving judgement on whether or not he think this is feasible.
Van der Poel verkent olympisch mountainbikeparcours: 'Gaat nog een flinke puzzel worden'
Mathieu van der Poel liet het EK op de VAM-berg schieten voor het olympische testevent in Parijs op de mountainbike. Van de ene vuilnisbelt naar de andere. En niet alle toppers zijn te spreken over het parcours.
RR will depend much more on luck and things going perfectly. A lot less riders and teams are smaller, than normally. It becomes very unpredictable and it will be very difficult to save your matches for a decisive attack. High chance of being caught out and someone is gone.
And sponsor-wise... it is really only MSR, Ronde and PR that he needs to be on the starting line-up for. He only did SB, T-A, MSR, E3, Ronde, Scheldeprijs and PR this spring. Half of these was also just prep.
I honestly struggle to think that he will not defend is title in PR. Of course given how strong Philipsen was this year, he is entitled to be coleader.
Regarding the calendar, there are two cross countries in April, then there are 4 from late May to early July. So he could actually do a full classic season and at least 4 CC before the olympics
Yesterday the UCI revealed the schedule for MTB races. None of these collide with spring classics, because Paris-Roubaix is the 7th of april.
12 - 14 april: Mairipora (Brazilië)
19 - 21 april: Araxa (Brazilië)
24 - 26 mei: Nove Mesto (Tsjechië)
14 - 16 juni: Val di Sole (Italië)
21 - 23 juni: Crans Montana (Italië)
28 juni - 7 juli: Haute-Savoie (Frankrijk)
27 - 29 september: Lake Placid (Verenigde Staten)
4 - 6 oktober: Monte-Sainte-Anne (Canada)
12 - 14 april: Mairipora (Brazilië)
19 - 21 april: Araxa (Brazilië)
24 - 26 mei: Nove Mesto (Tsjechië)
14 - 16 juni: Val di Sole (Italië)
21 - 23 juni: Crans Montana (Italië)
28 juni - 7 juli: Haute-Savoie (Frankrijk)
27 - 29 september: Lake Placid (Verenigde Staten)
4 - 6 oktober: Monte-Sainte-Anne (Canada)
I would say the Brazilian leg is not feasible with spring classics preparation. Racing in Europe on the 7th of April and then going to Brazil is hard on the body, and difficult to adapt to a different climate in such a short notice, even more after a month, month and a half or hard racing.
Judging by this year, that period would also be needed to rest before starting the preparation for the summer months of TdF/Olympics. One month between Araxa and Nove Mesto is maybe short to put a rest period and then a build-up program to the first european XCO race.
I very much doubt that he has a bigger chance of winning MTB versus road race. On a very curvy, long hard race on a street circuit with Montmarte as a punchy hill the route has MvdP written all over it. On MTB it's quite a question mark if he'll hit that 2019 level again, on longer road races on circuits like this he's the very best.
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I'm thinking, after that Philipsen's announcement that he'll ride for Roubaix, and Mathieu for Ronde, that maybe Mathieu wants to do full Ardennes campaigne. I think, he'll might skip Roubaix indeed. He wants Ronde badly, and he wants to beat Pogacar there. So what does he need? Answer is better climbing legs. So he will focus on that, and then naturally he could try at Ardennes, with a secondary big goal being Liege. He already has 3 monuments, he has the Worlds, and I think he is perfectly aware where lies his strength and which races are most important to a rider like him. It's not Grand Tours, or other stage races, he already started to treat them as a preparation races. He wants classics, and he wants all of them. So for next year: Ronde, Liege, Olympics, Worlds.
I think you’re leaving out the base probability here: there will be some big favs for the RR but the total number of riders who have a reasonable chance to win (20?) will be higher than the number of MTB competitors with a reasonable chance to win.
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