Mathieu van der Poel will be back at the start of an official course in the Tour de France next week in the Renewi Tour for the first time. Due to pneumonia, the 30-year-old former world champion had to give up in the Tour just under a month ago. For the Dutchman it will be his third participation in the only stage race at WorldTour level in the Benelux.
On Sunday, Van der Poel is already at the start in Etten-Leur for the criterion there. “This summer I have not raced in the Tour since my task, so we have to wait and see how the form is. But the course is me,” says Van der Poel about his participation in the Renewi Tour, which will start a Zeeland stage from Terneuzen to Breskens on Wednesday 20 August.
The winner of the stage race in 2020 has already circled a stage with red, he says in a press release from the organization. This is the ride on Friday, August 22, with arrival in Geraardsbergen, Belgium: a ‘classic’ ride through the Flemish Ardennes. Last year Van der Poel did not ride the course due to pain in his knee.
Before Van der Poel got out of the Tour in July, he won a stage and rode in yellow for four days. The professional wheel round Etten-Leur recently announced its arrival to that criterion. Before the start of the Renewi Tour, cycling enthusiasts can already see the all-rounder on the bike in Etten-Leur in action.