Mathieu van der Poel had a little bit of a scare on the opening lap of the X2O Trofee Loenhout. The world champ had some brief contact with a spectator, but was it intentional?<\/p>\n
New footage captures a hand brushing against the Dutch champion as he exited a corner, causing him to almost lose his balance. At first, many (including your pals at Canadian Cycling Magazine) thought it was another bozo doing something dumb<\/a>. It\u2019s happened so many times to MvdP\u2013whether in \u2018cross or the road, it seemed par for the parcours.<\/p>\n But afterward. Van der Poel downplayed any malicious intent, telling Sporza, as reported by Wielerflits<\/a>, \u201cI think the man was just cheering. I didn\u2019t feel it was deliberate.\u201d He admitted the moment was dangerous but said he managed to stay upright.<\/p>\n The spectator, who was briefly held for questioning, also expressed regret. \u201c\u201dI really have nothing against Mathieu van der Poel. I feel so guilty. This was not my intention at all. I really like the cross, so this is the last thing I wanted to happen. I would like to take this opportunity to apologize to Mathieu again,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Organizer Christophe Impens called the incident \u201cunlucky.\u201d But he stressed it shouldn\u2019t overshadow the race. Van der Poel quickly recovered and moved back to the front. As he does.<\/p>\n Fans were expecting a thrilling Van der Poel vs Van Aert showdown on Monday, but it was not to be. A flat tire ended Van Aert\u2019s charge before things even got hot<\/a>. Then, Van der Poel controlled the race and cruised to victory once again. Toon Aerts and Joris Nieuwenhuis animated the early laps\u2026with Van der Poel steadily moving up after a shaky start and brief contact with a spectator.<\/p>\n By Lap 3, only Van Aert and Van der Poel remained clear. But bad luck struck again for the Visma \u2013 Lease a Bike rider, and that was that. Nieuwenhuis claimed a podium spot, while Niels Vandeputte crossed second, keeping the series standings tight.<\/p>\n Check it out below and decide for yourself.<\/p>\n \ud83c\udfa5 Sporza. Video of the \ud83c\uddf3\ud83c\uddf1 Mathieu van der Poel \u2018incident\u2019 in \ud83c\udde7\ud83c\uddea Loenhout. https:\/\/t.co\/4ZIvAcz0vs<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/y1ylF1cH3q<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Cyclocross24.com (@cyclocross24) December 29, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n