Mathieu van der Poel explains what went wrong in Tour de France opening stage

Mathieu van der Poel explains what went wrong in Tour de France opening stage

Mathieu van der Poel was marked as a favorite for the first stage and the yellow jersey in the Tour de France, but the Dutchman had a tough day on the way to Rimini. He finished 88th, 18 minutes and 46 seconds behind the race leaders.

Van der Poel responded shortly after the stage to CyclingProNet. "It was a very tough and hot day, so it’s difficult to get back into the race," said the Dutchman, who was competing for the first time since late April (Liège-Bastogne-Liège, ed.) and thus was immediately confronted with very challenging conditions.

Riders like Wout van Aert and Mads Pedersen survived the 3500 meters of elevation. "I don’t know how big the group was at the finish, but normally I should have been with the best," Van der Poel realized. "However, I blew myself up on that tough climb." There, UAE-Team Emirates set a high pace, causing much of the peloton to struggle.

Van der Poel hopes to improve from here on out

However, the rainbow jersey holder isn’t discouraged. "That’s just how racing goes. Hopefully, I can only get better from now on, because I want to try to win a stage. In the coming days, I want to continue to grow, but I know the next stage will also be tough for me," he said, referring to the second, hilly stage that will take the peloton to Bologna.

Finally, Van der Poel had kind words for yellow jersey wearer and stage winner Romain Bardet. "A good guy," he said about the man who stood on the podium with him and Tadej Pogacar at Liège-Bastogne-Liège this year.