Mathieu van der Poel joins teammates in La Plagne, Wout van Aert trains with cyclo-cross riders

With preparations for the big summer goals now in full swing, we see many cyclists fine-tuning their form. This includes Mathieu van der Poel and Wout van Aert, each preparing in their own way for the upcoming races.

In the case of Van der Poel, it is already clear that his summer will revolve around the Tour de France and the road race at the Olympic Games in Paris. The Dutch Alpecin-Deceuninck rider has now joined his team's high-altitude camp in La Plagne, where they traditionally prepare for the most important race in the world.

On Instagram, Van der Poel, who finished his spring season in the second half at Liège-Bastogne-Liège, showcases his photography skills from the French mountains. The Dutchman took a beautiful shot of teammate Oscar Riesebeek, who, along with others like Jasper Philipsen, is also present at the training camp.

Continue reading below the photo.

Van Aert hits the road with Soete and Van Kessel

Major rival Wout van Aert, of course, had a completely different spring after his crash in Dwars door Vlaanderen at the end of March. The Belgian riding for Visma | Lease a Bike has already got some race kilometers back in his legs with the Tour of Norway, but felt that things were not entirely up to par there yet. Nevertheless, he returned home with several top finishes.

At the time of writing, it is not yet clear what his next races will be, but Van Aert will mainly focus on the Olympic double in Paris: the road race and time trial. No news yet about a potential participation in the Tour de France or any other races. In preparation for this, on Wednesday Van Aert trained with two fellow cyclo-cross riders, Daan Soete and Corné van Kessel. "Getting in between the wheels to keep up," the latter wrote.