Mathieu van der Poel will start next week in the Renewi Tour 2025, which will take place from Wednesday, August 20 to Sunday, August 24. The 30-year-old Dutch team leader of Alpecin-Deceuninck won the 2020 edition after an eighty-kilometre solo in the final stage. "The course suits me. Especially the stage finishing in Geraardsbergen is normally circled in red no matter what," says MVDP himself.
The Renewi Tour is the only Dutch-Belgian stage race in the WorldTour and has been a great summer race for years. This year, although there is no time trial included in the route, the final weekend promises plenty of excitement. The start this year is in Terneuzen, Zeeland, with the finish also in the Dutch town of Breskens. The other four stages take place on Belgian soil. The key stage to the Vesten in Geraardsbergen is on Friday this edition. The final stage on Sunday is in Leuven.
Title defender Tim Wellens and European champion Tim Merlier had already been announced earlier. Organizer Golazo is now very pleased in a press release that former world champion Van der Poel is joining them. "I have good memories of the Renewi Tour, especially that victory in 2020," Van der Poel explained. "Since my withdrawal from the Tour, I haven't raced, so it’s a bit of a wait-and-see how my form is. But the course suits me. Especially the stage finishing in Geraardsbergen is normally circled in red no matter what."
This will be MVDP’s third participation. He won on his debut in 2020, helped by a solo of more than seventy kilometres in the final stage. The following day, he finished sixth in Liège-Bastogne-Liège. Last year, as world champion, he guided sprinter Jasper Philipsen to victory, before having to withdraw after the time trial. Normally, this race marks the start of Van der Poel’s preparation for his clear main goal in late summer: the MTB World Championships in Switzerland (September 14). On Sunday, he will still ride the post-Tour criterium in Etten-Leur.
MVDP returns! 🔥 Stage and overall winner in 2020, and a fan favourite wherever he races. @mathieuvdpoel will be at the start of the Renewi Tour 2025. Get ready to see him in action again from next week! 💥 #RenewiTour pic.twitter.com/mfsFLMkCWw
— Renewi Tour (@RenewiTour) August 14, 2025
Mathieu van der Poel
