Van der Poel regrets beating Pogacar due to crash, for the race and for himself: "Really suffered"

Mathieu van der Poel had to dig very deep, but after a brilliant battle, he won Paris-Roubaix on Sunday for the third year in a row. The Dutchman from Alpecin-Deceuninck was left to go solo after Tadej Pogacar crashed, and gritted his teeth all the way to the finish line.

"This is definitely something to reflect on," Van der Poel told NOS afterward. "I'm incredibly happy and I think the team did fantastic work once again. I'm especially glad that after being sick (after E3 and leading up to the Tour of Flanders, ed.), I found my best legs again and winning Paris-Roubaix three times in a row is pretty special. It's been another unbelievable spring, yes."

Van der Poel, who had already won Le Samyn, Milan-San Remo, and E3 this year, was beaten by Pogacar last week in the Tour of Flanders. But in his very first Roubaix, the Slovenian threw away his chances with a crash. "I really suffered in the last 30 kilometers, also because I ended up alone due to Tadej’s mistake. Otherwise, it would’ve been really tough for either of us to drop the other. As it was, I had to go solo from far out, and that took a lot of energy."

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Van der Poel didn't fully notice Pogacar's setback

That Pogacar came close again after his crash but had to let go due to a bike change, Van der Poel wasn’t even aware. "It all happened really fast and Pogacar attacked. Then suddenly there was that corner, and he misjudged it. I just managed to steer through it. I don’t know what happened to him after that, because the gap suddenly became very big. A bike change? I didn’t catch that, because my radio was broken. I just rode my own pace and when I looked back, I saw the gap was quite large."

It meant that Van der Poel entered the Vélodrome solo. "Special," "amazing"... it all comes to mind. But Van der Poel also emphasized to Sporza: "After the Forest of Arenberg, I accelerated two or three times and then once more with the wind coming from the side. That’s where the race was decided." As for losing Jasper Philipsen in the final, Van der Poel saw that coming: "He had already crashed and told me he wasn’t feeling great."

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Van der Poel calls Pogacar "not normal"

In the flash interview with the race organization, Van der Poel gave a similar analysis: “It was a shame that Tadej made that mistake. It was still a long way to the finish from there. It was tough, with a headwind on the last two cobbled sections. But I had to go for it, because that’s part of racing. When I got a flat, I didn’t know the time gap, and I couldn’t signal that I needed to change bikes. The road was narrow, and it took a while for the car to get there, but in the end, it all worked out.”

He also had kind words for Pogacar, calling him “a true champion.” “I wasn’t surprised by what he did in his first Roubaix, but it’s obviously not normal. He’s an exceptional talent, and it means a lot to beat someone like him. If he hadn’t made that mistake, we probably would’ve arrived at the velodrome together. Maybe he’ll take revenge next year.”

Paris-Roubaix was the final race of Van der Poel’s spring campaign, as he now shifts his focus to the summer. “I hope to do a stage race again before the Tour, so I can hopefully reach top form going into the Tour.”

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🎥 Pogacar (bleeding after 3-ton crash) and Van Aert (bleeding knee) crash, Pedersen and Ganna puncture, Teunissen crashes

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