Dutch cycling star Mathieu van der Poel added another title to his glittering career by winning the Gravel World Championship in Leuven, Belgium, on Sunday. A two-time winner of Paris-Roubaix, Van der Poel, who specializes in difficult terrain, won the race after breaking away from Florian Vermeersch with 13 km to go.
World road champion in 2023 and third at the World Championships in Zurich, Van der Poel continues to shine in various disciplines. Grandson of the legend Raymond Poulidor, he ended his season with this triumph. Van der Poel, a six-time cyclocross world champion and European MTB champion, said: “It was a big goal for me and I’m happy to end the season this way.”
Florian Vermeersch took second place, while Quinten Hermans secured third place in the sprint. Marianne Vos, another Dutch cycling legend, won the women’s race the day before, beating Lotte Kopecky, the newly crowned world road champion.
Gravel, a sport that mixes paved and unpaved terrain, has been growing in popularity, having emerged around 15 years ago in the USA.