Mathieu van der Poel’s father Adri explains cyclocross struggles in Italy by saying his son was ‘scared’

Mathieu van der Poel’s father believes his son was scared of injuring himself after missing out on a podium spot at the Val di Sole cyclocross race.

The Dutch cyclist was one of the biggest names competing in Italy as he turned out for the World Cup event after making a detour from Alpecin-Deceuninck’s training camp in Spain.

While he was one of the favourites, Van der Poel struggled for pace in the icy conditions and rarely looked comfortable, ultimately finishing in eighth position.

The race was won by Belgium’s Michael Vanthourenhout, but with the 2023 season soon ahead, there was evidence that Van der Poel was right to be cautious.

Eli Iserbyt suffered a big crash, as did women’s cyclist Fem van Empel.

“I think Mathieu was scared,” he said.

“It was simple, he didn’t have the confidence on the snow and ice. It showed at the start and during the race. Michael Vanthourenhout rode with confidence, Mathieu didn’t. You saw that at every corner.”

He continued: “His form is certainly not the issue. If you look at his heart rate for the last five laps, I don’t think he went above 125. He was never in the game.

“Every now and then he saw someone lying on the ground that had hit a post. That makes you think, doesn’t it?

“We can’t forget that he raced [cyclocross] properly for two years. This performance is really the last thing I’m worried about. Next week is another race on a different course.”

The paper reported the team as saying they did not want Van der Poel to gamble with his health.

“We had said in advance not to take too many risks,” they were reported to have said.

“The rest of the cyclocross season and especially the spring are too important to risk anything. Just look at what happens to Iserbyt. He took risks everywhere and then paid for it.”

Van der Poel has a busy calendar in the coming weeks, with the Zilvermeercross event on Friday and three consecutive racing days from Boxing Day, as well as Herentals and Koksijde in early January.