Mathieu van der Poel’s kindergarten teacher and school director saw 25 years ago that he had phenomenal driving skills.
Mathieu van der Poel may have a Dutch passport, but his roots lie in Belgium. The world champion grew up in Kapellen (Antwepren) and also went to school in Belgium. Nowadays he lives with girlfriend Roxanne Bertels in the residential ‘s-Gravenwezel.
The newspapaer went to the Sint-Jozef Vrije Primary School in Heide and the Sint-Jozef Institute in Essen to talk to Mathieu van der Poel’s then teachers about his school years. They were able to tell many nice anecdotes.
Rascal
“He was a rascal. But a pleasant rascal.” is how his former primary school principal describes him: “Mathieu knew when he had gone too far. And he was such a funny little guy. You could never really be angry with him.”
Despite his playful character, he still got good marks. “He was always among the better students in the class. But I didn’t have the impression that he had to work hard for that. Mathieu was just a sensible boy who finished primary school with speaking ease.”
As a toddler, Van der Poel already made an impression on his bicycle. “As a 3-year-old, I can still see him walking next to his bike and jumping back on like an accomplished rider,” says his kindergarten teacher. “Without slowing down. I had never seen that before. I have never experienced it again since.”
His director confirms this. “His driving skills were phenomenal. He slalomed between the parents all the way to the gate. And father Adrie just raced behind him. He didn’t trust that one bit.”
Secondary
Van der Poel also remained a gamer in secondary school. “Mathieu was an exuberant student, a pacesetter,” says a former classmate. “But he was always polite. I don’t remember a teacher ever shouting at him.”
Two teachers confirm this. “Mathieu could upset the class, but knew perfectly well when he had gone too far. He was a playful boy with manners.”
He had a lot of trouble sitting still. “When the bell rang, he would rush outside to play football on the playground. Although he had to be a bit careful in those last years. He wasn’t allowed to injure himself, right? The course was sacred.”
Top photo: YouTube/ATV
