Nothing stops him! Not even the stupidity of the spectators. It might even be a source of motivation. Mathieu van der Poel continued his impressive harvest of victories by winning the X20 cyclocross trophy in Hofstade (Belgium) on Monday ahead of Wout Van Aert.
The Dutch world champion, who took the lead from the 2nd of 9 laps, won his fourth success in four outings this winter, after Namur on December 14 then Antwerp and Koksijde this weekend.
But this new demonstration of force was marred by the – new – stupid gesture of a spectator. As Raymond Poulidor’s grandson passes by, a man ostensibly throws the smoke from his vaping machine in his face. A gesture captured by the TNT Sports cameras and which seems deliberate and premeditated since an accomplice films the scene.
Unfortunately, this is not the first time that MVP has been the target of human stupidity and certain spectators. In 2024, he was spat on during the Tour of Flanders, then a woman threw a cap at him during Paris-Roubaix.
At the beginning of 2025, during the Cyclo-cross World Cup event in Hulst in the Netherlands, he was again spit on, thrown with beer and urine. To the point that on the next lap of the circuit, recognizing one of the perpetrators, the Dutchman took the law into his own hands and spat on him. Also during the Paris-Roubaix 2025, where MVDP is the three-time defending champion, a spectator threw a full can in his face. A non-exhaustive list…
His only fault is to be strong, too strong and in particular to beat the Belgian idol Wout Van Aert. A domination that some find difficult to accept.
The two cross-country leaders, who should only face each other five times this winter, will meet again on December 29 in Loenhout (Belgium). Hoping that this time, the spectators will be more fair.
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