Mathieu van der Poel became world champion among the elite for the eighth time in his career last Sunday after winning the Gravel Worlds.
The Dutch rider put on a real show around Leuven on Sunday as he attacked multiple times. Eventually, he rode away together with Florian Vermeersch and took his first world title in gravel.
“It is great to add another rainbow jersey to the collection, in a different discipline too. The one on the road may be rated even higher, but I am very happy with this one. I didn’t have this one yet. It is nice to tick that one off. Gravel is becoming immensely popular and I do it a lot myself, so yes, it is very nice”, he said afterwards.
It also became clear that the Dutchman is waiting for a holiday.
“How long has it been since I had a French fry? It’s been a long time, but now I won’t wait long to eat one,” said Van der Poel.
It is not yet clear what the coming months will look like for Van der Poel. Cyclocross fans naturally hope that he will soon get into the field, but that is far from certain at the moment.
“Will I go cyclocross? Maybe. If I knew, I would tell you. We still have to decide whether or not I will go cyclocross this winter. I am going on holiday first, then we will see.”
