Van der Poel on the golf course, Van Aert visits three country point: this is how World Championship top performers prepare for Glasgow

The Cycling World Championships are now upon us, which means we can gradually start to prepare for the global showdown for the 2023 rainbow jersey. This World Championship is scheduled a month and a half earlier than usual, so that requires a slightly different preparation for the top favorites. Let IDLProCycling.com walk you through the ins and outs!

Normally we watch the road race of the Cycling World Championships in the second half of September, but this year's edition will take place in the first weekend of August. This not only means that Remco Evenepoel gets to enjoy last year's title for one month and a half less, but also that a different preparation is required in order for the riders to be in top shape. How do the top favorites do this?

The Netherlands: both Van der Poel and Van Baarle straight out of Tour de France

The Dutch will start on Sunday, August 6, with two absolute leaders: Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Dylan van Baarle (Jumbo-Visma), who are both coming out of the Tour in good shape. The former is seen, along with his eternal rival Van Aert, as a top favorite for the world title competition, which also meant that there was no time to celebrate in Paris.

"The World Championship is a major goal for me this year, and now is not the time to celebrate, I need to maintain that focus. I got a bit better in the third week of the Tour de France, so I hope that will help towards the World Championship," he said after the Tour de France. Van der Poel indicated that he would still be doing some heavy training, but there was also time to relax on the golf course.

Renaud Breban

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#WTF 🚲 / 🇳🇱 Mathieu van der Poel (ADC) en mode golfeur. 🏌🏻

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Van Baarle did get to celebrate with Jumbo-Visma, but he too was already thinking of the World Championships. "I'm really looking forward to it. The circuit is super tough and the weather is often not so great there. It's going to be beautiful, but it's hard to say how I'll recover from the Tour. But my form was really good there. Together with Mathieu, we have two strong weapons."

Belgium: intense training for Van Aert and Evenepoel, final tweaks in Basque Country

Three out of of the four top favorites (according to the bookmakers, that is) are Belgian: Wout van Aert, Remco Evenepoel and Jasper Philipsen are the players Belgium is betting on in Glasgow. The former is already on cloud nine, following the birth of his second son. "And I hope that will continues for a while," he laughingly said at the criterium in his hometown of Herentals.

Van Aert skipped the celebrations in Paris after teammate Jonas Vingegaard's Tour win, but quickly got back into his routine to prepare for the World Championships. On Monday, he cycled from his house to the three country point between the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany on the Vaalserberg - a journey of a whopping 234 (!) kilometers, which he completed in seven hours and twelve minutes. Looking promising, Wout!

Reigning world champion Evenepoel underscored his aspirations with a resounding victory in the Clasica San Sebastian. "This is a significant boost both for the body and the mind. I am heading to the Cycling World Championships in Glasgow with confidence," said the Soudal Quick-Step rider.

Philipsen was honored in his hometown of Ham after winning the green jersey and talked to Het Nieuwsblad about his preparation. "It's been quite busy. I've raced in four criteriums. Friday was the first time where I didn't have one on my schedule, but then I trained for the World Championships in Glasgow. I'm heading there with the ambition to become world champion, but it will undoubtedly be a difficult task. My form is good and I hope to keep it there until Scotland. After the World Championships, I will hopefully have some time to rest a bit more."

Denmark: Pedersen structured season around "World Championship peak form"

The last Cycling World Championships in Great Britain ended in a surprising victory for the then relatively unknown Mads Pedersen. The strong Dane won in Harrogate in 2019, where the race was disrupted by rain and cold weather conditions. And that's exactly the kind of weather they're expecting in Glasgow this time around.

According to national coach Anders Lund, Pedersen - who withdrew early from the Giro and didn't compete for green in the Tour - has structured his season so that he can be at his peak for the World Championship. "Mads, like Kasper Asgreen, came out of the Tour very well," he told TV2. "Physically, they are both there, but they also have a lot of self-confidence. They have competed in the finals of tough Tour stages, which were very similar to a scenario of a classic or a World Championship race."

Slovenia: Pogacar taking care of business in southern France

Tadej Pogacar is seen by many as a candidate for the world title. The Slovenian, who will have to do without compatriots Primoz Roglic and Matej Mohoric in Scotland, removed the criteriums of Aalst and Surhuisterveen from his schedule after riding the Tour de France - with an eye on the world title race. Instead, he spent considerable time at home with his girlfriend Urska Zigart, who made a compilation of their time together.

After his stage win on the penultimate day of the Tour de France, Pogacar showcased some impressive data for the data enthusiasts. Thanks to his attack on the Champs-Elysées - where Nathan Van Hooydonck did not want to ride along - and eventually a leadout in the final kilometer, he recorded his highest threshold value in Paris.

One weekend before the World Championship, he climbed on his bike near his residence in Monaco for a KOM (King of the Mountain) hunt on the ten-kilometer-long Col de la Madone. Richie Porte recorded a cracking time there a few years ago, but Pogacar calmly sharpened that by half a minute. "With this, I'm luring Richie back to Europe," the Slovenian laughed.

France: Laporte and Alaphilippe behind small smoke screen

If there is one country you can always expect something quirky from, it's the French team led by national coach Thomas Voeckler. They have Julian Alaphilippe, the winner of both the 2020 and 2021 World Championships, and with Jumbo-Visma rider Christophe Laporte, they also have last year's runner-up. The latter is already touted as a favorite by teammate Van Baarle.

"I've seen this guy at training camps and this should suit him well. I see him as one of the favorites. There are always those guys from the second line, who you kind of forget about, but who are still very good. Christophe is one of them, mark my words," Van Baarle said in his podcast In Koers.

Alaphilippe will certainly need to improve greatly if he wants to bounce back from a less than stellar Tour performance, leading up to the World Championship. "I haven't touched the bike much," he said ahead of the Clasica San Sebastian, which he did not finish but was ultimately won by his teammate Evenepoel.

Outsiders: Matthews fully committed to world title

Then there are some outsiders who can often be overlooked. Michael Matthews skipped the Tour de France with the World Championships in mind. Instead, the Aussie prepared in Livigno, with the aim of fulfilling his dream of becoming a world champion. "I've finished second, third and fourth before. Anything less than a world title would be kind of disappointing for me." It should be noted that Matthews fell during the Prueba Villafranca and did not finish both the Tour of Castile and Leon and the Clasica San Sebastian.

Other men who often perform well in championships are Stefan Küng, though he seems to have his sights set not just on the road race, but also on the World Time Trial Championship, and Michal Kwiatkowski, who is currently focused on the overall victory in the Tour of Poland. Other potential top favorites such as Tom Pidcock (mountain biking in Scotland), Matej Mohoric (believes the course doesn't suit him) and Filippo Ganna (focusing on World Time Trial Championship) are skipping the global title competition.