TakeWorlds5 days ago
Mathieu van der Poel is skipping both Canadian one-day races to ride a five-day stage race that finishes just seven days before Worlds. That's not hedging — it's a deliberate bet on rhythm and endurance over sharpening for one hard afternoon.
The Tour de Luxembourg (September 16–20) packs five varied stages, including a 20.4 km time trial, into the week before the September 27 road race in Montréal. Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec and Montréal offered one-day polish on a course close to the Worlds circuit — but only 14–16 days to recover and refocus afterward. Van der Poel is choosing sustained load over late-race sharpening, a calendar call that reads as confidence in his form rather than a search for it.
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