Mathieu van der Poel’s return to mountain biking at the UCI Mountain Bike Series XCO World Cup in Nové Město na Moravě did not go as planned. Within the first six minutes of the race, he suffered two crashes and eventually withdrew during the third lap on Sunday. His team, Alpecin-Deceuninck, has yet to release any updates regarding the severity of his injuries.
It was Van der Poel’s first mountain bike race in nearly two years and his first World Cup outing since 2021. His initial crash occurred on the opening lap as he tried to advance around the outside of the group but lost control after making contact with another rider, crashing into the barriers. The second incident happened on a pump track section, where he again lost balance, went over his handlebars, and hit the ground, with his bike slamming into the fence.
The situation worsened for Alpecin-Deceuninck when Samuel Gaze, who had placed eighth in Saturday’s XCC race, also crashed and abandoned on the fifth lap.
At the front of the race, Christopher Blevins delivered a dominant performance for Specialized Factory Racing, solidifying his lead in the World Cup standings. He was followed by Mathis Azzaro (Origine Racing Division) in second, Lars Forster (Thömus Maxon) in third, and Blevins’ teammate Victor Koretzky in fourth. So far, there has been no official word from Alpecin-Deceuninck regarding possible serious injuries to Van der Poel or Gaze.
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