<\/div>\n
Mathieu van der Poel watched Omloop Het Nieuwsblad for years from the couch. Missing the Belgian one-day always left him with a tinge of regret.<\/p>\n
\n
All that changes Saturday as he rolls to the start line for the first time in his history-busting career.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I watched Omloop on TV, I often felt it was a pity not to be there,\u201d Van der Poel said Friday.<\/p>\n
After closing out his cyclocross campaign in Hulst with a record eighth rainbow jersey, he took a ski holiday and needed reassurance that the engine was still there.<\/p>\n
A few hard sessions on Spain\u2019s Costa Blanca revved up the engine but the decision to race was only locked in on Monday.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn that short period you obviously don\u2019t lose all your condition, but to be honest, it was a bit disappointing at first,\u201d he said of his first touch with the pedals.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wanted to see how I responded to my first training block. By now, I feel my level is good enough to start in Omloop.\u201d<\/p>\n
No elite male has ever won Omloop and gone on to win the Tour of Flanders in the same season.<\/p>\n
So maybe MVDP never wanted to jinx himself.<\/p>\n
One of MVDP\u2019s few missing trophies<\/h2>\n
For a rider who\u2019s dominated the northern classics, Omloop is a curious blank line on his glittering palmar\u00e8s<\/em>.<\/p>\n After chasing CX \u00a0history during much of the past decade, Omloop usually came too early after the mud and muck.<\/p>\n This year is different, and Van der Poel wants to open up what could be an equally record-breaking monument season.<\/p>\n At 207km, Omloop is the symbolic Belgian kickstarter to the cobbled campaign. Some of cycling\u2019s biggest names have hoisted the trophy.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I were ever able to win it, it would definitely be a beautiful race to add to my palmar\u00e8s<\/em>,\u201d Van der Poel said Friday. \u201cAnd an extra race day heading into the coming weeks and months is never a bad thing.\u201d<\/p>\n With riders like Wout van Aert, Jasper Stuyven, and Tiesj Benoot all sidelined for different reasons, Van der Poel might ride away with this one.<\/p>\n Riders like Tim Wellens (UAE Emirates-XRG) and Tom Pidcock (Pinarello-Q36.5) will try to make it a race.<\/p>\n Omloop is not a six-hour monument-level race of attrition, and that could mean extra traffic that he\u2019d prefer.<\/p>\n The Muur and Bosberg can crack the race open, but it often comes down to a reduced bunch sprint.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Muur and Bosberg are important, but whether it will be decided there tomorrow, we\u2019ll only know then,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Against speedsters like Paul Magnier (Soudal Quick-Step), Biniam Girmay (NSN Cycling), Matthew Brennan (Visma-Lease a Bike), and Arnaud De Lie (Lotto-Intermarch\u00e9), Van der Poel will want to create space to reduce the field.<\/p>\n Forecasted tailwinds in typical Belgian late-winter gunky weather in the closing kilometers could favor a breakaway.<\/p>\n And he won\u2019t carry the full weight of the race. With Jasper Philipsen and Kaden Groves, Alpecin-Premier Tech has options if it comes down to a sprint.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a tough race, but often a fairly closed one as well, where it\u2019s difficult to make big differences,\u201d he saiid. \u201cNot all the pressure is on my shoulders.\u201d<\/p>\n Saturday provides the first glimpse of Van der Poel\u2019s road form ahead of clashes with Tadej Poga\u010dar later this spring.<\/p>\n He usually doesn\u2019t disappoint on Belgian pavement.<\/p>\n