**Mathieu van der Poel Makes a Shocking Announcement as Five More Riders Withdraw from Tour de France in Alpecin–Deceuninck Blow**
In a dramatic development ahead of the Tour de France’s toughest stages, Mathieu van der Poel stunned fans with a personal announcement while his team, Alpecin–Deceuninck, confirmed that five more riders have withdrawn from the race due to illness and injury concerns.
Van der Poel, speaking at a press conference, revealed he has been struggling with fatigue and lingering injury worries of his own but vowed to continue riding, despite growing uncertainty within the team. “This isn’t the Tour any of us planned for,” he admitted. “We’re losing key teammates and it changes everything. We’ll need to fight even harder.”
Alpecin–Deceuninck announced the names of the five departing riders in an official statement, citing respiratory infections and crashes sustained in the opening week. The mass withdrawals leave the team severely depleted as they prepare for grueling mountain stages and high-pressure breakaways.
Team director Christoph Roodhooft called it a “serious setback” but emphasized their determination to continue racing aggressively with the remaining squad. “We came here to make the race exciting. We won’t stop now,” he said.
With morale tested and their Tour strategy in chaos, all eyes will be on van der Poel to see whether he can lead what remains of the squad to stage success—or if more shocks await as the world’s most prestigious race unfolds.
Leave a Reply