After a well-deserved ski vacation (with Nys?), Van der Poel focuses on the spring classics

Mathieu van der Poel marked the end of his cyclo-cross winter last weekend in Liévin with his seventh world title. The Dutch rider will now enjoy a well-deserved break before getting ready for spring, in which the winner of the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix again has big goals and especially hopes to peak in the "holy week."

The first significant date for the Dutch rider awaits on March 22. On that day, Van der Poel will be at the start of Milan-Sanremo, the first monument he has already won in 2023. "I will ride a classics season as usual, with more or less the same goals as in previous seasons. The only difference is that I will ride a race like Paris-Nice (March 9-16) or Tirreno-Adriatico (March 10-16) before Milan-Sanremo, but I don't know yet which one," he informed L'Equipe.

After the Italian monument, Van der Poel will continue to his beloved cobbled classics, in which he has one big goal: to win the Tour of Flanders again. "When I first participated, I fell in love with that race. But this year, Tadej Pogacar is participating. I must be in top form to keep up with him," he told Sporza. Van der Poel had previously mentioned that he would make the Tour of Flanders a main goal again.

However, the Dutch rider is not just watching for Pogacar; he also knows that teams like Visma | Lease a Bike and Lidl-Trek will travel to Flanders with a super strong squad. "Some teams have gained great strength across the board. But when Tadej attacks, many teams know it will be hard to follow him. That will make it fun for the spectators because the race will open up from very far away."

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Van der Poel joking with Nys

But first: a ski vacation with Thibau Nys?

But before the cyclo-cross world champion shifts his focus to the road season, he will first enjoy a well-deserved ski vacation. "Chances are that will be a ski vacation. I've heard that Thibau Nys is also going skiing. Maybe I should go with him," Van der Poel laughed.

And there is certainly a chance that Van der Poel will run into Nys somewhere on the slopes. The young Belgian has also indicated he is going to enjoy a ski vacation after his third-place finish in Liévin. "I'm taking ten days of rest now. The World Championship was my last race this winter. Early Monday morning, I will fly to Geneva, and from there, I will drive on to Val Thorens for a week's ski vacation. I will be careful, but I've been looking forward to this for some time. After that, things will start again soon because the season is coming," Nys told Het Laatste Nieuws.

Read also

Coach De Knegt forced to mediate between Van Empel and Brand after Cyclo-cross World Championship: Groenendaal and Nys give their opinion

Van der Poel aims for ten wins, Van Aert tries to keep up – Belgium hopes for exciting battles ahead

Van Aert "tips his hat" to Van der Poel after disastrous start ruins his chances: "Worst-case scenario happened"

God-like Van der Poel crushes the competition at World Championships with embarrassingly hard start, Van Aert overcomes nightmare opening for silver

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