Reigning cyclo-cross world champion Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) has revealed most of his winter race calendar. He will make his debut on December 14th at the Namur World Cup event, provided he is in good enough shape by then.
If he does not start in Namur, the Dutch star will begin his season a week later, on December 20th, at the Antwerp World Cup. After that, a busy schedule awaits, including up to eight World Cup races, three X2O Badkamers Trofee events, and the Exact Cross Mol. The goal of the 13-race program is to prepare van der Poel for the World Championships on February 1st in Hulst.
Van der Poel, who has seven World Championship golds, shares the record with Erik De Vlaeminck; an eighth title would make him the sole leader. In addition to the Namur World Cup, van der Poel's participation is also uncertain at the Benidorm World Cup.
Last season, Van der Poel competed in eight cyclo-cross races, debuting on December 22nd in Zonhoven, so he will start slightly earlier this year. Last winter, he won all the races he participated in.
Now that van der Poel's race schedule is confirmed, attention will turn to when he might first face his long-time rival Wout van Aert (Visma–Lease a Bike). The Belgian rider will return to cyclo-cross this winter but has not yet confirmed his program. Tom Pidcock (Q36.5) will not be racing cyclo-cross this year.
