Mathieu van der Poel Uses 2024 Tour de Luxembourg as Springboard for World Championships Glory
Mathieu van der Poel, the reigning World Champion, is using the 2024 Tour de Luxembourg as his final tune-up for the upcoming UCI Road World Championships, where he aims to retain his prestigious Rainbow Jersey. With the road race fast approaching, van der Poel is sharpening his form against some of the biggest names in cycling, including Tadej Pogačar, Remco Evenepoel, and Primož Roglič.
Dominating the Early Stages
Van der Poel made an emphatic statement on the opening stage of the Tour de Luxembourg by taking victory in a reduced sprint, showing his versatility and form ahead of the Worlds. In Stage 2, he nearly repeated the feat but finished a close second to former World Champion Mads Pedersen. His consistency placed him in the race leader’s jersey heading into Stage 3, the first true test of the general classification.
However, Van der Poel’s GC ambitions were hampered during the grueling third stage, where illness-ravaged his Alpecin-Deceuninck team, leaving him without critical support. The Dutchman battled bravely but ultimately finished 41 seconds behind the stage winner, Soudal-Quick-Step’s Mauri Vansevenant, who now takes the overall lead. Van der Poel remains optimistic despite slipping to third place overall, 34 seconds adrift of Vansevenant.
“It was an incredibly tough stage. Today we simply did not have enough manpower to control. I was soon alone in the race and had to react a lot to attacks,” Van der Poel said after the stage. His team has been hit hard by illness, losing several key riders, forcing him to shoulder much of the burden on the road. Despite this, he remains upbeat about his own performance and legs, with his main focus on stage wins rather than the general classification. “As I said before the race, the goal was mainly to win a stage than to go for the GC. We will see how the last two stages go.”
Van der Poel’s Eyes on World Championship Showdown
With the World Championships looming, van der Poel is eyeing a high-profile clash with a formidable field, including his biggest rivals, Pogačar, Evenepoel, and Roglič. Each has tasted success at the highest levels, and van der Poel knows that retaining the Rainbow Jersey will require a peak performance. His preparation in Luxembourg has been designed to fine-tune his condition ahead of this ultimate showdown.
The Dutch rider’s resilience and tactical nous will be tested in the remaining stages of the Tour de Luxembourg, but more importantly, the Worlds will demand all of his legendary grit and skill.
General Classification Shakeup
The third stage’s outcome has significantly reshaped the GC standings at the 2024 Tour de Luxembourg. Vansevenant leads the pack with a time of 12:21:16, followed by Davide Formolo of Movistar, 23 seconds behind. Van der Poel now sits in third place, 34 seconds down on Vansevenant but still very much in contention for a strong finish. Other notable contenders include Marc Hirschi of UAE Team Emirates and Andreas Kron of Lotto Dstny, both within a minute of the leader.
2024 Tour de Luxembourg GC after Stage 3:
- Mauri Vansevenant (Soudal Quick-Step) – 12:21:16
- Davide Formolo (Movistar Team) – 0:23
- Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) – 0:34
- Marc Hirschi (UAE Team Emirates) – 0:49
- Andreas Kron (Lotto Dstny) – 0:50
With the race heating up and the battle for supremacy intensifying, van der Poel’s focus remains fixed on the bigger picture—the defense of his Rainbow Jersey against the world’s best. The Tour de Luxembourg may not have gone entirely to plan, but it has provided a critical stepping stone in his preparations for cycling’s ultimate prize. The question remains: can van der Poel once again rise to the occasion and outshine the likes of Pogačar and Evenepoel to retain his World Champion status? Only time will tell.
