he said in conversation with Het Nieuwsblad<\/a>. \u201cIn the past, this race was already on the limit for the classic, punchy riders. But back then, it could still just about work. Now it\u2019s over that limit.\u201d<\/p>\nVan der Poel\u2019s relationship with Strade Bianche has always been slightly unusual. His victory in 2021 remains one of the most memorable editions of the race. On the gravel climb of Le Tolfe, he attacked alongside Julian Alaphilippe and Egan Bernal before dropping both on the steep final ramp into Siena\u2019s Piazza del Campo.<\/p>\n
Yet despite that iconic win, Strade Bianche has never become a permanent fixture in his spring programme. The Dutchman returned only once afterwards, finishing fifteenth in 2023, and has since been absent again from the Tuscan start line.<\/p>\n
The rivals factor<\/p>\n
Course evolution is not the only consideration. The strength of the modern start list also plays a role in shaping the team\u2019s thinking. \u201cIf you run into Pidcock or Pogacar at 100% it would be very hard,\u201d Roodhooft explained, referring to the riders who now regularly dominate the race\u2019s toughest terrain.<\/p>\n
Riders such as Tom Pidcock and Tadej Pogacar have increasingly turned Strade Bianche into a race decided on long gravel climbs and sustained power efforts, terrain that naturally favours riders with a slightly different profile.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd yes: then Mathieu is better off focusing on other races,\u201d Roodhooft added.<\/p>\n
Training priorities and calendar balance<\/p>\n
There is also a practical element to the decision. The placement of Strade Bianche in the calendar leaves little room between other important objectives in Van der Poel\u2019s programme.<\/p>\n
With Tirreno-Adriatico beginning the day after Strade Bianche, the team see more value in using that period as part of a structured training block. \u201cMathieu also needs a good training block from time to time,\u201d Roodhooft noted, pointing out that the days between Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Tirreno-Adriatico can be used productively to build form.<\/p>\n
For Van der Poel, the broader focus remains on the cobbled Classics and the Monuments where he has built much of his modern palmares.<\/p>\n
That does not mean Strade Bianche has lost its appeal. \u201cI\u2019m even sure Mathieu himself also regrets it,\u201d Roodhooft admitted. \u201cIn the end, it remains an attractive race.\u201d<\/p>\n
But the team\u2019s conclusion remains pragmatic. \u201cAs the race is today, Mathieu has little business there.\u201d<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
For Alpecin-Premier Tech, the conclusion is straightforward: the Dutchman\u2019s focus is better placed elsewhere in the Classics…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":518927,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[221189,64,63,169409,784,77973,85,177851,6494,63570],"class_list":["post-525473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-alpecin-premier-tech","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-christoph-roodhooft","tag-cycling","tag-mathieu-van-der-poel","tag-sports","tag-strade-bianche","tag-tadej-pogacar","tag-tom-pidcock"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=525473"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/525473\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/518927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=525473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=525473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=525473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}