Cyclist Mathieu van der Poel believes that he has abandoned his country and his team during the World Cycling Championships. The cyclist spent several hours at a police station on Saturday night after an incident involving two noisy girls in his hotel hallway. As a result, he had a lousy preparation for the World Cycling Championships that took place on Sunday.
According to Van der Poel’s lawyer, Michael Bowe, Van der Poel’s girlfriend was in tears and the cyclist himself was very disappointed with the judge’s ruling. Van der Poel was sentenced to a fine of around 1000 euros for assaulting two girls in his hotel in Sydney.
Van der Poel, who was in Australia for the World Cycling Championships, spent a large part of the night from Saturday to Sunday in jail because, according to police, he allegedly pushed the girls aged 13 and 14 on the hotel corridor.
A girl fell to the ground. The other girl suffered minor injuries to an elbow when she hit the wall.
Van der Poel is said to have pushed the girls because they made noise in the hotel where the cyclist was staying and knocked on his door several times. He had gone to get a story because he couldn’t sleep, just before his participation in the road race of the World Cup. The Dutchman himself stated on Sunday that he had not touched the girls.
Van der Poel was tried for two cases of ‘common assault’. He was fined $1,000 in one case, and $500 in the other. The judge charges Van der Poel that he has taken the law into his own hands. Van der Poel’s lawyer, Michael Bowe, called the conviction disappointing to NOS and said he would immediately appeal. Van der Poel got his passport back after the verdict and is allowed to leave Australia.
The lawyer admitted that Van der Poel had taken the law into his own hands. “It was late, he was under pressure to perform. And everyone makes mistakes. He will learn from this.”