Van der Poel fell ill in run-up to Tour of Flanders: "I was on antibiotics for 3 days"

That fourth victory never really came close in the end. "Not really, no. I never really had that great feeling, and I was already at my limit from quite a distance," Van der Poel said in the flash interview. "The crash was not ideal, of course, but we put up a good fight with the team, and I did everything I could. I am happy with the podium."

Van der Poel was on the asphalt early in the race: a major crash on the open road was unavoidable, so he hit the ground. "Of course, it's never good to crash, but the damage wasn't too bad. I think we got away with that crash, but it wasn't ideal." Among others, Tim Wellens (UAE Team Emirates - XRG) and John Degenkolb (Picnic PostNL) had to abandon the race after that crash.

The defending champion's positioning was not always perfect. 'Sometimes I was just a bit too far back, but I think I can be happy with my race. I fought pretty hard, but I felt already I was on the limit.' On the Oude Kwaremont, with about 55 kilometers to go, Van der Poel had to close a gap. "We were doing pretty well, but just before the second time up the Kwaremont, I was boxed in and lost a lot of places. I had to come from far back, but that wasn't a disaster in itself. Afterward, I was where I needed to be."

Pogacar accelerated on the last passage of the Oude Kwaremont and rode away from everyone. After the Paterberg, the four chasers (Van der Poel, Wout van Aert, Mads Pedersen, and Jasper Stuyven) did not come any closer. The world champion increased his lead. "The strongest was at the front. The one alone at the top of the Kwaremont or Paterberg always wins. I think it was pretty clear who was the strongest today."

Before the race, Johan Museeuw and Tom Boonen, among others, said that it was only a matter of time before Van der Poel would win his fourth title, and they saw him as the big favorite for this edition. "Everyone thought that the fourth win would be easy, but the same was thought in previous years when they were on three wins, so who knows, maybe it will stay at three. In any case, I am already very proud of the three wins behind my name."

I am looking ahead to next Sunday when Van der Poel will try to defend his title in Paris-Roubaix. "The Tour was also high on my list, but I wasn't good enough, so I'm glad I fought my way to the podium today. It's a less difficult race than the Tour of Flanders, and you also need a little more luck, but we'll see."

Van der Poel later appeared before the NOS cameras, explaining his reasons for losing. His health had played tricks on him in the week before the race. "I haven't been that healthy since the E3, which is a factor of course. I had a bit of a cold. I certainly wasn't the only one; many riders fell ill. I certainly won't use that as an excuse. It was clear that Tadej was the strongest today."

Sports director Christoph Roodhooft explained the situation to Sporza. "He happened to send me a message on April 1 (last Tuesday) saying he was very ill. Don't joke about it, eh," I told him. But he took antibiotics for three days.' It meant his pupil did not start today's race in the best shape. "It was a difficult run-up. Being ill is never fun, and he missed a few training sessions. He was already coming down with a cold at the E3. We felt that he was getting better, but it got worse. There's nothing we can do about it."