Mathieu van der Poel: Alaphilippe is the favourite for World Championships
'I don't feel much pressure in road🌱 racing' says multi-talented Dutchman





168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Mathieu van der Poel has named 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Julian Alaphilippe as the number favourite to become world road race ꦜchampion🤪 next month, insisting the pressures of his own favourite status weigh lightly on his broad but young shoulders.
Van der Poel is targeting the rainbow jersey on the road after a revelatory spring classics campaign this year in which he won Dwars♉ door Vlaanderen and Amstel Gold Race. He also became cyclo-cross world champion in February and has won three mountain bike World Cups over the summer, but has made a successful return to the road this week at the Arctic Race of Norway as he begins his preparation for the Yorkshire Worlds at the end of September.
Speaking to reporters in Norway about the 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Yorkshire World Championships, Van der Poel quickly reached for the name of Alaphilippe, who has won Milan-San Remo, Strade Bianche and La Fleche Wallonne this year, along with two stages at a Tour de France that he led until the penul🃏timate stage.
“For me, Alaphilippe is the favourite. He is the🌌 strongest rider this year on the road overall, for sure,” Van der Poel said🧔.
“If you see what he did at the Tour, it’s quite incredible. It’s his last big goal and we’v🍃e seen this year that if he sets his mind, he can achieve really nice things. So for me he’s the strongest opponent.”
The World Championships were not on Van der Poel’s programme a🅠t the start of the year but his remarkable spring campaign caused a swift re-think, as it became clear he could switch from one-hour efforts on the cyclo-cross bike to winning big classics of more than six hours.
What’s more, the rolling Yo൩r♔kshire course represents an opportunity that was too good to pass up.
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“The spring was the first time I did lon🔴g races, and I know now I’m capable of riding a strong finale. For me, that’s the most important thing to know,” he said. “I think the course is a little similar to Ams🦹tel Gold Race, with lots of small climbs, narrow roads, a lot of turns.”
Status amongst the favourites
Despite his relative inexperience, the 24-year-old doesn’t shy away from acknowledging his belief he can win, nor his status among the favourites.
“I’m used to the pressure. I don’t think it can rise much higher than tꦿhis,” he said, latter adding: “I don’t really feel much pressure in road racing.
“I know everyone’s calling me a favourite, so it doesn’t matter if I win one or two or three stages here, or even in the Tour of Britain. I don’t think it matters. I will be a favourite no matter what, so I just try to race aꦍs hard as a I can the next few days and also at the Tour of Britain and we will see.”
Between the Arctic Race of Norway and the Tour of Britain, which begins on September 7, Van der Poel will spend 10 days at an altitude training camp, likely to be in the Sierra Nevada. His final preparation for the Worꦗlds will come in the form of a couple of Belgian semi-classics.
Patrick is a freelance sports writer and editor. He’s an NCTJ-accredited journalist with a bachel♐or’s degree in modern languages (French and Spanish). Patrick worked full-time at Cyclingnews for eight ye🗹ars between 2015 and 2023, latterly as Deputy Editor.