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Van der Poel withdraws from World Cup after being arrested by police

The World Cup en route had an unexpected prologue that ended with Mathieu van der Poel in an open court case. The Dutch cycling star withdrew from the event which was won by Remco Evenepoel due to the incidents that occurred the night before. Van der Poel was arrested by Australian police and spent many hours in jail after being involved in an incident with two teenagers who harassed him while he was resting in his hotel. The cyclist must now spend six weeks in Australia pending the resolution of the case.

Van der Poel, one of the favorites to win the World Championship gold, left at kilometer 35 for no apparent reason. The cause was revealed by the Sporza portal, the runner had a confrontation with two girls of 13 and 14 years old who did not let him sleep.

The Dutchman explained it like this before the race: “There was a little dispute. I went to bed early and many children in the corridor of my room had to knock on the door continuously. After they did it several times, I ended the noises. I didn’t ask them nicely to stop. Then they called the police and arrested me. Here they are very strict with these issues. I didn’t get back to my room until four.”

The New South Wales Police explained what happened in a statement: “At 10:40 a.m. on Saturday 24 September 2022, a 27-year-old man staying at The Grand Parade in Brighton-Le-Sand was involved in a Verbal altercation with two adolescents aged 13 and 14. He was subsequently taken to the Kogarah Police Station and charged with two counts of common assault. He was granted a conditional bond and is due to appear in Sutherland Local Court on Tuesday, September 27, 2022.”

According to various accounts, Van der Poel pushed both teenagers, one of them fell to the ground and the other suffered a scratch on her elbow. After The police arrived and arrested the cyclist.

Christoph Roodhooft, manager of the Alpecin team, explained the incident on Eurosport and assured that the rider withdrew from the race because “He couldn’t sleep, he was mentally broken”. He confirmed that Van der Poel must remain in Australia for at least six weeks until the process of his legal dispute progresses.

Van der Poel is one of the phenomena that have emerged in the new generation that dominates cycling. He has won the Tour of Flanders twice, he has been the leader of the Tour and the Giro in the first week, he has won three stages in the Tour, the Strade Bianche and his record includes 40 victories, most achieved with exhibitions or by crushing.

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