The cyclist who Van der Poel pushed: from an alcohol and drug addict to competing with the best

Wednesday, December 27, 2023, 00:17

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Mathieu van der Poel’s push against a rival in the Gavere cyclocross (Belgium) has been more talked about than the Dutchman’s victory. Some cycling fans have called for a sanction for the world champion, who pushed Felipe Nystrom away with his arm, who was already being bent over and taking a photo with the public.

Nystrom doesn’t care about the position in each test. For this cyclist, being on the starting line is a victory. A native of Costa Rica, this 40-year-old athlete has fought to survive. And nine years ago, when he was a drug addict, alcoholic and living on the streets, he was about to die. “He was afraid of falling back into addiction and depression,” he said in an interview with Cyclingnews. After undergoing treatment he had the opportunity to move to Portland (United States) and he did not waste it.

Although it was not easy to start a life in another country. “I didn’t know how to make friends like normal people, since before I had always been in a bar, drunk and high,” he said. So he chose sports as a way to meet people. In fact, when he was little he had played soccer.

He started triathlon, but found that swimming in Oregon waters was not easy due to its low temperatures. He then moved on to cycling, with which he discovered he had a talent. Thus, in 2019 he managed to win the Costa Rican national championship.

In 2021, Nystrom discovered cyclocross and fell in love with the sport. Sliding with a bicycle through the mud and jumping with it. When he found out that the World Championships would be held in Fayetteville (United States) in 2022 and that he would not have a place on the national road team, he did his best to represent his country in cyclocross.

And Nystrom succeeded. He was on the starting line with the big stars in the mud. When on the fifth lap he was overtaken by the winner of the race Tom Pidcock (Great Britain), a steward signaled to the Costa Rican cyclist to get away from him. Any cyclist would have been upset, but not Nystrom, who shouted with joy when he was told he would be awarded an official classification.

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2023-12-26 23:17:23
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