How come van der Poel doesn’t race Strade Bianche anymore?

Strade Bianche is one of the most exciting races to watch–and tough to ride–but one pro won’t be there on Saturday: Mathieu van der Poel. The ‘cross and Classics star loves the dirt, cobbles and tough races, so you’d think the Tuscan gravel race would suit him. After all, he did win it in 2021. But since that dub, he hasn’t showed up? So how come, sports fans?

With nearby Tirreno–Adriatico beginning only two days after Strade Bianche, some wondered whether Van der Poel might add the race back to his schedule in 2026. But nope. That was never really on the table. At Alpecin–Deceuninck, the Dutchman wasn’t even listed as a reserve option. He’s clearly on form, the former world (and current ‘cross) champion smoked everyone at Omloop Het Nieuwsblad.

Too much, even for MvdP

The explanation, according to team management, is fairly straightforward: the race has simply become too demanding for him.

“Back then it was just possible for punchy classics riders, now it’s over the limit,” team boss Christoph Roodhooft told Het Nieuwsblad, as reported by Wielerflits.

When Van der Poel won the race in 2021, the course already featured more than 3,000 m of climbing. Back then, riders faced around 3,070 m of elevation. That was tough, but still doable for explosive Classics specialists like MvdP.

Since then, however, the difficulty has increased significantly.

“It has become much hillier,” Roodhooft said. “Not just in length, but especially in altitude. Compare it to five years ago and the number of climbing metres has increased by 20 to 25 per cent”

“Shorter but higher

Recent editions underline that shift. In 2024, riders faced around 3,669 m of climbing, and the following year the total climbed to around 3,700 m. Even with organizers trimming the 2026 route, reducing the distance from 213 to 201 km and removing several gravel sectors , the race still has roughly 3,500 m of elevation.

For context, that’s far more climbing than many other major classics. Ronde van Vlaanderen features about 2,000 metres of elevation over nearly 270 km , while the Amstel Gold Race, a race Van der Poel has occasionally skipped, (and famously won with one of the best finishes in cycling history back in 2019) has around 3,100 m across a longer route.

While van der Poel won’t be lining up, a whole bunch of other big names are. UAE has Tadej Pogačar and Isaac Del Toro. Pogi is looking to win again, but maybe this time he will take his Mexican…