Van der Poel explains key to his 2026 form after Omloop win: “You don’t see that growth as quickly with today’s 20-year-olds”

The story of the race is now well known. Van der Poel avoided trouble at the Molenberg — somehow staying upright as riders hit the deck in front of him — then bridged up to Florian Vermeersch, before dropping everyone on the Muur to ride away to victory. It may have looked effortless on television, but Van der Poel insisted it felt anything but easy in the conditions.

Mathieu, did you enjoy your first Omloop?
“Yes, actually I did. Only the weather didn’t really play along — I expected it to be better. Maybe I even benefited from it. We made a good clothing choice and in the end it became harder. Whether I’ll come back, I don’t know yet. Everything went perfectly this time.

“It wasn’t an easy race, because it was seriously cold and tough. And there was a lot of stress — that takes its toll as well. But the feeling was good, so I’m satisfied.”

What’s at the root of this win?
“We train hard, but everyone does that. I really enjoy the process now, and as I’ve got older I notice I can handle more. I can train more — and harder — and I really like doing that.”

You’re 31 now — are you at maximum capacity?
“I think so, but it has also grown over the years. When I look at how much 19- or 20-year-old riders train now, it’s completely different to what I did. The growth I’ve experienced, you don’t see that happening as quickly with them. If you’re already training 30 hours a week as a junior, it’s hard to keep developing. But they’re already impressively good. It’s not bad — it’s just different.”

Tell us what happened on the Molenberg.
“Honestly, I have no idea. Maybe my cyclocross background still came in handy. I saw something happen and I just reacted. It wasn’t the plan to go there already, but with the way the situation unfolded, I went for it.”

Pluimers was lucky you were right behind him.
“I definitely did everything I could not to ride over his head. We did know it was wet there, and you do sort of take into account that something like that can happen.”

You ended up on the road with Florian Vermeersch and Tim van Dijke — two guys you know. How was that?
“I train with Tim more often, so I know him well. Florian I’ve run into a few times in races: he beat me in that wet Roubaix sprint, and at the Gravel Worlds we were also up the road together. I know how strong he is, so I took him into account as well. Without him we wouldn’t have made it to the finish, so I have a lot of respect for his ride.

“He’s on the podium too, and people can forget that. He’s rewarded with an Omloop podium for his performance and that really means something. If you don’t want to race, you end up with absolutely nothing.”

Did it go the way you expected?
“Not really, because I didn’t think I’d be away already on the Molenberg. We were aiming for an attack on the Muur, because before that the racing is on wider roads. But because of the circumstances, it happened earlier.”

Nobody has ever won Omloop and the Tour of Flanders in the same year. How often did you think about that?
“Not a single moment.”