Mathieu van der Poel demands action after being hit in face by projectile at Paris-Roubaix
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Dutch rider Mathieu van der Poel of team Alpecin Deceuninck poses on the podium after the Paris-Roubaix cycling classic on April 13.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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ROUBAIX – Mathieu van der Poel was struck in the face by a water bottle thrown from the roadside during his third consecutive win at Paris-Roubaix on April 13, prompting the Dutch cyclist to call for action.
The 30-year-old is a huge star on the road cycling scene but is not universally popular and has had his share of run-ins with fans over the years.
“It was like getting hit by a stone. The bottle was nearly full and weighed half a kilo and when someone throws it like that it’s not nothing,” he said in his post-race press conference at the Roubaix velodrome.
The incident happened 37km from the end of the race on a cobbled mining road packed with fans, who had been out in the fields for hours.
“Something should be done about it. People spitting and throwing things, it’s too much and I’m going to ask for action to be taken,” the Dutchman added.
“I hope we can identify who did it and take action.”
Van der Poel was spat upon at the recent E3 Saxo Classic in Belgium, where he was roundly booed by an unruly section of the Belgian fans.
He has frequently had urine thrown at him on the cyclocross circuit and also had a confrontation with a fan in a spitting incident in 2024.
Mathieu van der Poel of Alpecin-Deceuninck competes in the Paris-Roubaix cycling classic.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
Van der Poel was himself arrested after a run-in with teenagers, whom he accused of playing “knock-a-door-run” on his hotel door on the eve of the 2022 world championship race, for which he was the favourite.
CCTV images showed him dressed only in underwear chasing the teenagers back to their room.
He pulled out of the race after 50km, having spent the night at a police station.
The latest incident marred his victory slightly, as he became the first rider since Italy’s Francesco Moser in 1980 to win three consecutive editions of Paris-Roubaix, edging out Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar in the race nicknamed “The Hell of the North”.
“It means a lot. I was really suffering,” said van der Poel after hugging his friend and rival Pogacar.
He described Pogacar as “one of the best riders ever”, but added he had seen that the Slovenian was going too fast into a tight, narrow corner towards the end of the race.
“When he made that mistake in the corner, I had to go for it,” he said of the key move.
Dane Mads Pedersen was third in a three-way sprint for the final podium slot, with Belgian Wout van Aert fourth. AFP, REUTERS
