Mathieu van der Poel sets date for first mountain bike World Cup in four years

Mathieu van der Poel is set to return to racing at the end of May as he switches to the mountain bike for a round of the UCI World Cup in Nové Město.

The Dutchman, who hasn't raced since concluding his spring Classics campaign with his third Paris-Roubaix victory on April 13, will be back in action for Alpecin-Deceuninck on the weekend of May 23-25 as he makes a return to cross-country mountain biking.

Van der Poel hasn't participated in a World Cup round since the 2021 season, when he won the short-track races in Albstadt and Nové Město.

He raced in the Tokyo Olympics later in the same year but crashed out early in the race and suffered persistent back problems, which carried over into 2022. In 2023, he raced at the Paris Olympics test event, but didn't participate in the MTB event at the Olympics proper.

Van der Poel has instead focused on cyclocross and road racing with great success, picking up three 'cross world titles and seven of his eight victories in the Monument Classics in the past three years.

He was rumoured to be making his mountain bike return this weekend in Heubach, Germany, but will instead head to Czechia for the third UCI World Cup round of the season. His move back to mountain biking comes with an eye on preparation towards the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

After taking on the race at Nové Město, Van der Poel will refocus on the road for the summer as he heads to the Tour de France.

He'll switch back to mountain biking after July, Alpecin-Deceuninck stated – "a detailed program will be announced later" – with the UCI MTB World Championships in September a late-season goal.

The Belgian squad also announced the upcoming mountain bike schedule for world champion Puck Pieterse and New Zealand racer Sam Gaze.

The pair will head to the HC event in Heubach on May 18 before taking part in the next three rounds of the UCI World Cup.

As well as racing at Nové Město, both Pieterse and Gaze will head to Leogang, Austria, on June 5-8 and Val di Sole, Italy, on June 20-22. Gaze will race on for another round in Andorra on July 9-13, while Pieterse is provisionally down to race the same event, though her participation is not yet confirmed, with another appearance at the Tour de France Femmes expected in July.

Both riders skipped the opening World Cups in Brazil, Pieterse as she was focusing on the Spring Classics and Gaze through illness.

The UCI Mountain Bike World Series continues this weekend (May 16-18) with downhill and enduro rounds in Bielsko-Biała, Poland, before cross-country returns for a third round in Nové Město the following weekend.