Rad star hit on the face
Bottle attack in the race: culprit reports
04/16/2025 – 1:18 p.m.Reading time: 1 min.
In the middle of the race, Mathieu van der Poel is hit by a bottle on the traditional Paris-Roubaix journey. Now the culprit has registered.
The man who thrown Mathieu van der Poel with a bottle at the classic bike classic Paris-Roubaix has apologized in writing. This was reported by the Belgian newspaper “Het Laatste Nieuws” on Wednesday. The 28-year-old from Waregem admitted his deed-and spoke of a “stupid action”.
In an email available to the newspaper, the bottle thrower writes that he was glad that van der Poel won the race despite the incident. At the same time, he was aware that he had to apologize to all drivers and spectators. The bottle was lying in the grass, he lifted it and thrown it when Van der Poel drove past – “without thinking”. “After half a second I realized how stupid and dangerous it was. It was very embarrassing for days,” said the 28-year-old, who admitted that he had “drunk a lot” during Sunday.
About 33 kilometers before the finish, a filled drinking bottle had flown directly into the face of Van der Poel. The scene was clearly seen in the television pictures. After the race, the driver from the Alpecin Decin-Decin-Decin-Decin-Deceuninck reacted with sharp words: the bottle was full, weighed half a kilo and he was on the road at 40 km/h. Van der Poel spoke in the context of “attempted homicide”.
Both the UCI and his team announced legal steps. The public prosecutor’s office in Lille French has already started investigations into “violence with weapons”.