Mathieu van der Poel already back on indoor trainer following wrist fracture

Mathieu van der Poel has already returned to training after fracturing his wrist during Sunday's round of the UCI XCO World Cup in Nové Mesto at the weekend.

The Dutchman fell twice during the race before abandoning on the third lap in what was his first mountain bike outing since 2023.

His Alpecin-Deceuninck team later announced that he had suffered "a minor avulsion fracture of the scaphoid bone, indicative of ligament damage to the wrist".

He'll miss the early part of his team's high-altitude training camp in the Alps in preparation for July's Tour de France. However, his participation in next month's Critérium du Dauphiné remains unclear.

"The injury will be subject to continued and intensive medical evaluation throughout the week," Alpecin-Deceuninck announced.

"Further assessments, scheduled towards the end of the week, may offer greater clarity regarding his program and the potential for participation in the Critérium du Dauphiné."

On Tuesday, just two days after his double crash, Van der Poel posted a video to Instagram showing himself back on the bike.

Riding with Zwift on an indoor trainer, Van der Poel wore a wrist brace for the workout.

It remains to be seen how quickly his recovery will be, though an update on his progress is expected later this week.