Tim Merlier: 'Mathieu van der Poel came to us and said he was not good, I thought he was joking'

Van der Poel lost touch with the main favourites group of the Knokteberg in the final 30km and drifted back to the peloton

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Mathieu van der Poel came to Dwars door Vlaanderen 2021 as the defending champion and the rider with the most wins taking part in the race but he looked a shell of his normal self on the roads of Belgium.

Van der Poel (Alpecin-Fenix) was dropped by the main favourites on the Knokteberg climb where he drifted back to the peloton that contained his team's on-form sprinter, Tim Merlier. The Belgian champion said he thought Van der Poel was joking when he said he wasn't feeling good.

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