Latvia protest against Mathieu van der Poel's World Championships result, saying he 'endangered spectators'

Latvian Cycling Federation calls on UCI to explain decision not to disqualify Dutchman who mounted pavement

mathieu van der poel and toms skujins at the World Championships
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The president of the Latvian Cycling Federation has accused Mathieu van der Poel of endangering spectators during the World Championships road race, and questioned the UCI for not disqualifying the Dutchman.

Van der Poel bunnyhopped onto a pavement with 58km to go in the men's event in Zurich, Switzerland on Sunday and accelerated past his rivals in a chase group. He then went on to place third, winning the bronze medal, ahead of Latvia's Toms Skujiņš in fourth.

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Tom Davidson
Senior News Writer

Tom joined Cycling Weekly as a news and features writer in the summer of 2022, having previously contributed as a freelancer. He is the host of The TT Podcast, which covers both the men's and women's pelotons and has featured a number of prominent British riders.

An enthusiastic cyclist himself, Tom likes it most when the road goes uphill and actively seeks out double-figure gradients on his rides.