The off -road cyclist, born or done?

On the doors of spring, The cycling calendar begins to focus, on the one hand, in the first -day classics and in the races of one week, in cyclingAnd, on the other hand, in the stages and cups of the world on mountain cycling. And all of this, after leaving the hardest winter months, those where the muddy circuits have hauled cyclocrós lovers.

The normal thing is that every professional cyclist focuses on a discipline to do their best, but, from one hour to this point, especially in the male category, True phenomena appear successfully competing in various disciplines and where calendars are alternate trial The only point is the pedal athletes on two wheels, but in different lands, in different frames and against real specialists.

Dutch Mathieu van der Poel and English Thomas Pidcock are the two greatest exponents of this new total cyclingBecause the successes of Great Prestige have scored cycling disciplines that are different from cycling on roads, mountains and cyclocrós.

The first has seven world championships in Ciclocrós, one from the road, one of the serious ones And there are many trials in the Mountain Cycling World Cup, while the second is a double Olympic champion and world champion of the Mountain Bike, in addition to the winner of Strade Bianche, in Gravel – conducted that he also has a Van de Poel with his winners – and even such an act -made stage of touring as the end of Alpha Allez.

And still have a third, the Belgian Wout Van Aert, who successfully replaces cycling on the road with the cyclocrós. Is there a common pattern for all of them?

The most important thing in these cases, something that all of the aforementioned cyclists seem to match, is that They appreciate a very important motor baggage, which helps them to have good technical bicycle controlRegardless of whether they compete with the fatter or finer cover, either stable, cobbled or even muddy. At the stage of developing a young cyclist it is important to get motor capabilities while thinking of the bike, at that age, nothing but a toy.

If we leave aside that the genetic component and family tradition can also play very important roles – Mathieu van der Poel is the son of adrie van der Poel, a remarkable road cyclist and world champion of Cyclocrós in the 90s, and grandson of Raymond Poulidor, a magnificent corridor of the large laps of the 60s and 70s,, A regular occupant of the podium of the tour of During the years of training, a future cyclist should not feel that their coaches are seeking to make him a sport of sportBut its priority should improve motor skills, work technically and tactical sections and develop basic skills in two wheels.

In that formative phase, it is important to respect body growth and get bicycle resourcesBecause they are a sensitive stage where you need to do without looking for the physiological basis. And, in the adult body, you can search for sports specialization. At age 12, a young man should not think about competing, but playing. Thanks to their many bicycle hours at a young age, talents such as Van der Poel, Pidcock and Van Aert have gained learning and technical skills, which we can define as perceptual-motor and coordinative capabilities, which can now apply to any discipline in two wheels.

All of this, with their talent and their sports ambition, makes each season leave as favorites In the trials they play, success has solved them many times. They are truly off -road cyclists and will decrease in history for their many capacities on any bike, regardless of them if they roll asphalt, mountain, gravel or pave.