KNOW YOUR ENEMY

When Wout van Aert and Mathieu van der Poel went head to head at the Tour of Flanders this autumn it was blockbuster viewing. Here were two exceptionally talented riders, born just four months apart, on the same career trajectories, matched equally in their physical abilities, taking each other on in one of the most prestigious races in cycling. Having raced each other for years in cyclocross, passing wins back and forth like tennis players firing shots over a net, Van Aert and Van der Poel’s rivalry had finally spilled onto the road after years of anticipation. It was a clash of the Titans.

The week before, at Gent-Wevelgem, signs of simmering tension off the bike had emerged between the two. Van der Poel and Van Aert were part of the nine-rider group that contested the race’s finale, but in the last 10 kilometres the pair marked each other out, and in doing so both missed out on the win. “There was only one rider who was really targeting me. Apparently, he preferred to see me lose rather than making a chance to win the race himself,” Van Aert said tartly after the race.

Finally, cycling had a real rivalry between two of its most exciting talents, one that was as fascinating to watch on the road as away from it. It’s a head-to-head rivalry that could last for years and define a generation. Are you Team Wout or Team Mathieu? Fans picked their side. Journalists analysed every look, move and word exchanged for days afterwards in the run-up to, and after, Flanders.

It’s no wonder everybody’s excited. It feels like cycling has been devoid of fraught,