Van der Poel hits the road for first time in 2019 at Nokere Koerse
20 March 2019 06:42
Correndon Circus rider Mathieu van der Poel will line up for his first road race of the season at the Danilith Nokere Koerse on Wednesday. The reigning cyclo-cross world champion will now follow a road programme that includes the GP de Denain, Gent Wevelgem and Dwars door Vlaanderen before his big goal of this spring – the Tour of Flanders on April 7. By reputation alone, the cyclo-cross star starts at Wednesday's Belgian one-day 'semi-Classic' as one of the favourites, although it's a race that usually goes the way of the sprinters.ADVERTISEMENT "He's going to be named as a favourite at every race he goes to," Correndon Circus team manager Michel Cornelisse told hln.be on Tuesday. "But he has no pressure on him from the team. "Mathieu has completed an internship [on the road], and is starting a new chapter from tomorrow [Wednesday]," continued Cornelisse, who confirmed that Van der Poel's big goal is Flanders, but reiterated that there are no expectations of the 24-year-old, who is also the current Dutch road race champion, and son of former pro Adri van der Poel, who won the Tour of Flanders in 1986. "Racing 260 kilometres on those typically Flemish roads can't be underestimated," Cornelisse warned of Flanders. "We'll see where we end up with Mathieu and the rest of the team. Anything's possible, but there's no expectation on our part."
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