What now for Van der Poel? Via Spain to Roubaix, but he is also looking forward to Liège: “I would like to try it”

He was completely exhausted on Sunday afternoon, when he crossed the line first in the Tour of Flanders for the third time in his career. “The hardest thing I have ever done,” said Mathieu van der Poel after the race in the Sporza studio.

Difficult or not, the Dutchman's record in Flanders' most beautiful since 2019 is astonishing: fourth, first, second, first, second, and first.

“I think that's racing with the best, yeah. And if you want to race somewhere, that plays a role too.”

With his third Tour of Flanders win, Van der Poel now has 5 traces, having also won Milan-Sanremo and Paris-Roubaix last year. There could be two more this spring, with Roubaix next week and on April 21 (most likely) also Liège-Bastogne-Liège.

Eye-catching: In the lead-up to Roubaix, Van der Poel first spent a few days under the Spanish sun. The Dutchman boarded a plane heading to Spain on Sunday evening, in order to start the Heli Classic tournament in the best possible condition.

And Liège-Bastogne-Liège? “It's not 100 percent certain yet, but there is a chance,” says van der Poel, who is already looking forward to clashing with top players such as Tadej Pogacar and Remko Evenepoel. “There they will find a course designed specifically for them. It will be difficult, but I would love to try.”

“I'm realistic enough to know that I probably won't be able to keep up when they're at the top. But the race still needs to go on. You never know what racial situation will arise.”