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Teams & Riders The "MVP" Mathieu Van der Poel Road Discussion Thread

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Now we've got the father 'Emad', pictured in the article, clout chasing in the gutter press and making his young daughters more identifiable.

Yep well done mate, even got the clowns in the Daily Mail comments section scalding his bad parenting.

Wow, just read those (I spend as little time on the Daily mail as possible).
Middle England has spoken and it's quite angry.
 
While I am reluctant to take the DailyMail as a source, if we are willing to take its report as true, a lot of the ire at the parents seems at least uncertain.

The father was not staying there: mother and a friend were in the hotel with 4 girls.
'But they did get in trouble. They are in trouble,' he said about the 'knock and run' prank the girls had engaged in before an enraged van der Poel lashed out at them.

'He's got every right to get angry, but not to do what he did.'

Some of us might be cynical and choose not to believe him, but none of us can say that we know that the girls were not punished by their parents for what they did, none of us can say that the parent did not have sympathy for van der Poel being angry, and perhaps most of all, none of us can say that we as kids never did anything that would have made our parents cross at/disappointed in us.
 
@ Armchair cyclist. Well, from that release from the newspaper it didn't sound like the mother cared. Maybe they reprimanded the girls later, but someone did call the police, and I am sure it wasn't MvdP. I would have never called the police for something like this. Maybe for a Criminal around my house. But not for two girls playing a prank at someone at the hotel. Call the hotel manager at the most. But why call the police unless you are full of yourself. No, no. I am not defending them on this. Sorry. IMHO.
 
@ Armchair cyclist. Well, from that release from the newspaper it didn't sound like the mother cared. Maybe they reprimanded the girls later, but someone did call the police, and I am sure it wasn't MvdP.

I know nothing of the mother's character, but neither does anyone else in this forum.

I believe that police involvement was appropriate, so did the responding officers, so did the magistrate. And according to records of the video of conversation between the mother and van der Poel, van der Poel himself suggested that they should be called.

I would have never called the police for something like this. Maybe for a Criminal around my house. But not for two girls playing a prank at someone at the hotel. Call the hotel manager at the most. But why call the police unless you are full of yourself. No, no. I am not defending them on this. Sorry. IMHO.

I'm not sure what you are saying here: no-one did call the police over kids doing a prank, so who are you describing as full of themselves?

I do not think it at all unthinkable that a woman in confrontation with an athletic and angry man wants to show what evidence she has to the police rather than to him. Nor do I think it surprising that after he has physically intervened, and entered the hotel room of young girls, her priority is challenging him on his response rather than apologising for what the girls had done.
 
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Everybody is overreacting, forums, sports media, but in the end...

1. Never blame kids/dogs but their parents/owners. What were these girls doing in the middle of the night, knocking on other guests' doors? What made them think that it was OK?

2. MVP is a star of cycling and with the good comes the bad...the attention...the BS...bad PR...live with it.

3. From a cycling standpoint I believe that the only non-Slovenian riders who could have recognized and reacted to Remco's attack were a healthy Alaf' or MVP.

Missed opportunity...big time.

Lessons learned: parents do your job and national teams don't stay at a freaking Ramada Inn.
 
I know nothing of the mother's character, but neither does anyone else in this forum.

I believe that police involvement was appropriate, so did the responding officers, so did the magistrate. And according to records of the video of conversation between the mother and van der Poel, van der Poel himself suggested that they should be called.



I'm not sure what you are saying here: no-one did call the police over kids doing a prank, so who are you describing as full of themselves?

I do not think it at all unthinkable that a woman in confrontation with an athletic and angry man wants to show what evidence she has to the police rather than to him. Nor do I think it surprising that after he has physically intervened, and entered the hotel room of young girls, her priority is challenging him on his response rather than apologising for what the girls had done.
The lady had called the police already, according to the source. MvdP most likely told her to call the police just to show that he was not afraid and show her that he did nothing wrong. As would most everyone would do. I am sure he would not do that in one of his most important days of his life if it was his decision. She should have called the hotel manager or staff. Or even him. But if we believe the source, then it escalated very fast. And think it is being blown out of proportion. I wish we had better videos than this.
 
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Lying in wait behind a hotel door...assaulting people in your underwear...it sounds like a mashup of different Fawlty Towers episodes
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I wonder why you and noob are so obsessed over the fact MVDP was in his underwear. He trying to sleep so he was in his underwear. Is that so strange? It's just underwear... Do you both live in the US?
I've said in this thread above that I think like a journalist that have worked with PR.

I am not from US. I am also not even slightly close to prude. I just am aware that others are and how it will be spun in the media, I am aware what stories media will chase and what it will cost Alpecin and Zwift for example to have him as their front figure after this.

Whether it's a world I like or not is another question. I keep many conflicting views and opinions in my head simultaneously. I rarely have strict opinions about anything because there's always going to be an opposing view that melts my heart.

“If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man's life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.”
 
Okay, so now a relatively young, highly accomplished (through hard work and dedication) person with absolutely no know history of anything other than very respectful and appreciative behavior towards others had a lapse of judgement dealing with a difficult situation that was brought upon him. In this wonderful age of social media he will pay the price of having his reputation permanently (perhaps) damaged. From here it will be very interesting to see the next moves of the parents who are ultimately responsible for kicking off this whole pathetic chain of events.
 
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Things happen very fast in this video, so it seems his explosiveness was in order.
Things happen very fast in this video, so it seems his explosiveness was in order.
Who is 'his'? The only way you can identify that person is because you went into it thinking that it was a tour d france cyclist. That might be the kids' dad for all we know. The girl at the door is clearly acting/faking. That video is as fake as fake gets.
 
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I stopped reading here because any argument got thrown out the window there.
Oh, but I've seen quite a lot of people suggesting the parents should beat the kids, that spanking should be legal etc.

That's the only thing I'm referring to in that sentence. To those that wanted the kids to literally be beaten/spanked etc. (In China, Korea etc it's perfectly fine to beat kids both young and old. I watch a lot of Chinese drama, movies and reality TV productions so it's just currently part of my cultural reference)

If that's what you mean, (I'm as bad as Sheldon Cooper when it comes to understanding irony and sarcasm.)
 
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Who is 'his'? The only way you can identify that person is because you went into it thinking that it was a tour d france cyclist. That might be the kids' dad for all we know. The girl at the door is clearly acting/faking. That video is as fake as fake gets.
I thought it looked like his hair?

But as everyone else was eventually convinced it was him so was I.

I agree the knocking looks weird. But are you sure it's fake? The mother did tell him she had it on camera before he was taken by the police.
 

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