Van der Poel: It was a bit of a shock to see Tour of Flanders final play out like that

Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) celebrates his win at the Tour of Flanders
Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) celebrates his win at the Tour of Flanders (Image credit: ERIC LALMANDBELGA MAGAFP via Getty Images)

After a hectic final kilometre at the Tour of Flanders it was Mathieu van der Poel who came out on top for the second time in three years having played a perfect tactical game on the run to the line in Oudenaarde.

The Dutchman had looked all set for yet another two-man sprint finish after riding the final kilometres alongside Tadej Pogačar at the front of the race, but Van der Poel slowed the pace late on before launching his sprint.

Van der Poel backed up his rival so much that the Slovenian was swamped by the chase group at 250 metres to go, leaving him free at the front of the group to sprint for a second Tour of Flanders victory.

"They were coming really fast from behind, so I decided to sprint from far by myself," he explained after the finish. "He went up Oude Kwaremont and Pater[berg] really fast. I was almost at the point of dropping. At the end it was a scenario I've had three times before, so I knew it already. I was only taking Tadej into account.

Dani Ostanek
Senior News Writer

Dani Ostanek is Senior News Writer at Cyclingnews, joining in 2017 as a freelance contributor and later being hired full-time. Before joining the team, they had written for numerous major publications in the cycling world, including CyclingWeekly and Rouleur.

Dani has reported from the world's top races, including the Tour de France, Road World Championships, and the spring Classics. They have interviewed many of the sport's biggest stars, including Mathieu van der Poel, Demi Vollering, and Remco Evenepoel. Their favourite races are the Giro d'Italia, Strade Bianche and Paris-Roubaix.

Season highlights from the 2024 season include reporting from Paris-Roubaix –  'Unless I'm in an ambulance, I'm finishing this race' – Cyrus Monk, the last man home at Paris-Roubaix – and the Tour de France – 'Disbelief', gratitude, and family – Mark Cavendish celebrates a record-breaking Tour de France sprint win.