His third prank

In the rain! Van der Poel triumphs in Flanders

Mathieu van der Poel did not let the rain stop him(Bild: APA/AFP/Belga/DAVID PINTENS)

World champion Mathieu van der Poel has impressively confirmed his position as favorite at the Tour of Flanders. The Dutchman won the spring classic in Belgium on Sunday for the third time after 2020 and 2022. 45 km before the finish, the 29-year-old from the Alpecin team pulled away from his pursuers, most of whom were forced to push, on the Koppenberg cobblestones, which were particularly slippery due to the rain, and rode to a superior victory. 

Van der Poel won the 108th edition of the Ronde after 271 km from Antwerp to Oudenaarde, which was made even tougher by rain in the final third, 1:02 minutes ahead of surprise rider Luca Mozzato (Arkea). The Italian won the sprint of the chasers ahead of the Australian Michael Matthews (Jayco), who, however, had left his racing line and was therefore dropped back. The German Nils Politt (UAE) was delighted with third place, while the only Austrian starter Marco Haller (Bora) crossed the finish line in 33rd place, 4:29 minutes behind.

"It was all about survival"
"It was all about survival today. The weather made it the toughest Ronde I've ever ridden," said van der Poel. "Winning Flanders in the world champion's jersey - it was a dream come true. I am completely exhausted." Last year's winner Tadej Pogacar was not at the start. Van der Poel's Belgian arch-rival Wout van Aert was absent with an injury after his heavy crash on Wednesday at Quer durch Flandern. Van der Poel is the first rider ever to finish the Tour of Flanders on the podium five times in a row. He also finished second in 2021 and last year.

Italian Elisa Longo Borghini (Lidl) triumphed in the women's race after 163 km, preventing the hat-trick of Belgian top favorite Lotte Kopecky. The red-white-red hopeful Christina Schweinberger finished in 32nd place (+3:30 min.). The race was overshadowed by a serious crash after ten kilometers. Two top riders, former winner Elizabeth Deignan from Great Britain and Switzerland's Marlen Reusser, had to retire.