Dutch national coach on why Van der Haar 'shines', Van Empel is no Pieterse, and Grifo above Rhino

There you are, suddenly, ten hours from home somewhere in France, knowing that the entire Saturday program of the European Cyclo-cross Championships in Pontchateau was canceled a day earlier. With the course hermetically sealed off, there was nothing left for the Dutch cyclo-cross riders to do but an hour of road training. Enough time for IDLProCycling.com to grill Dutch national coach Gerben de Knegt about the ins and outs of his team, his leading man and leading woman.

You were able to do some reconnaissance on Friday. What was the condition of the course?

"I know the course well, it has been the same for thirty years. On Friday, it was in surprisingly good condition. Of course, it had rained over the past few days, but it was quite manageable. The bikes got dirty, but this was certainly not a potential mud-cross. A lot of rain was predicted for Saturday, but so far (09:45 in the morning, ed.) it's not too bad either."

On a GoPro video from Cameron Mason, I only saw three short mud strips, that was it. Do you think a possible rain shower will change much?

"Well, it drains quite well. If it really rains heavily, then certain parts will become much tougher. But it won't be a real mud-cross anyway."

What do you think of the course? You know it well, you say...

"It's a beautiful course, but it's a real French cross. It's wide everywhere, with spacious turns, although they have made some turns a bit sharper. When you're on the course, you can really see the elevation changes, but with those wide lanes, you can carry a lot of speed. So if it's dry, you end up with a crazy cross. Challenging, but it will stay together for a long time. Because it's difficult to force anything. On Friday, it was still quite fast, so it will have to really rain for there to be sections that are truly not rideable."

A course where the discussion for Rhino or Grifo tires will come up if it gets wetter. Can you explain once more what the difference is?

"A Grifo tire has low studs, so if the grass is dry, you have enough grip with it. It's really a fast tire. The Rhino is really a mud tire, with coarse studs. I dare say that with that tire, you have to pedal 20 to 30 watts more to go just as fast. That's something big riders with power can compensate for, but it's an issue for lighter ladies. With a Rhino, you have more grip, so if there's mud, you have to use it. But if it's like it was on Friday, then you can ride well with a Grifo. You benefit from it on the fast sections, while you give a little away on the slippery spots. People often make too much of a thing about it. That's why there's a material post. If you think after one or two laps that it should be different, you take another bike. That still causes some stress among juniors and U23 riders."

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Rhino of Grifo: het verschil

So, probably a fast cross, then I say Lars van der Haar. You too?

"Lars can also handle a more challenging course, he's in form. But it's a course that suits him."

Pontchateau is also kind of a Thibau Nys course...

"Yes, yes, certainly. But we saw in Maasmechelen that he had an off day and that he couldn't hold his own against Lars. Nys will definitely be close, that's for sure."

Do you think he (Nys) will jump on the steps with the bike?

"That's where he can put pressure on someone like Lars, absolutely."

How will that Koppenbergcross weigh in? We heard Van der Haar say he was able to save a little, while others crossed the finish line looking very pale. There are four days in between...

"Yes, and now that Saturday has been canceled, the ladies also have four days to recover. That's nice because it was a grueling race on the Koppenberg."

How does Lars fit in with the group? He comes across as incredibly confident in interviews...

"He doesn't have to lie, everyone can see that he's good. He has morale, he shines. Normally, he's going to be close."

I mean maybe more: what kind of team leader and captain is he?

"Well, we're only here with four elite men, two of whom are also teammates of Lars (Pim Ronhaar and Joris Nieuwenhuis, ed.). But within the team, he is the boss. Lars is the oldest, even though he might not look like the oldest. He's just relaxed and always has his affairs in order, although he is someone who likes to plan his affairs almost to an autistic level. So, you do need to try to arrange things well for him. During a weekend like this, you notice that the juniors find it interesting to chat with him, and he certainly doesn't feel too big for that. He has a positive effect on the group."

Pim Ronhaar was quite downcast after the Koppenbergcross. He said he's not making progress. What can you do with him in these days?

"With Pim, it's always ups and downs. One day he's riding incredibly well and a few days later, it's nothing. It's often in his head as well. The Koppenberg is in principle an ideal cross for Pim. He doesn't like tactical riding, but just going full throttle and getting into position, so that was somewhat disappointing. He's still a young rider and now just needs to find some stability in his performances. That has always been a thing with Pim, even as a junior. Sometimes you just don't know, and there's no explanation."

He didn't arrive here completely deflated?

"No, not all. I'm not too worried about that."

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Looking at the women, there's Fem van Empel who stands out. I can imagine that she's in a different position now than, say, a year ago, right?

"Fem is still the same, really. Of course, you notice that she is the top favorite, but nobody can deny that. She can carry that role and pressure just fine, but Fem is just Fem."

What is Van Empel like in a group?

:When she's feeling comfortable, she can really crack some jokes."

For her, Rhino or Grifo doesn't make much of a difference, the gap is so big.

"True, but Pontchateau is an atypical course. If it's drier, it is harder for her to make a difference. If she performs at her normal level, she should be able to, but it could be that Ceylin (del Carmen Alvarado, ed.) is with her for half the cross. There are two tricky sections on this course, and if you survive those, you can hang on for a bit. You can really benefit from drafting in the wheel here."

You told me a few months ago that besides road cycling and cyclocross, you also passionately hope to see Van Empel on a mountain bike. What's the status of that?

"That's slowly fading into the background. Fem has done more than great on the road with Jumbo-Visma and she has noticed that she can score there. Combining that with mountain biking is then very difficult, especially if you want to qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris. If she still wants to do that, she would have to skip her entire spring season on the road, for two or three chances at qualification. I have discussed it with her, but I don't see that as a very big possibility. She will definitely continue mountain biking because she enjoys it. In that sense, Puck Pieterse has grown more into mountain biking, and Fem has not."

Finally: you recently told my colleague Tom that you are going to sit down to make a plan. Is there a special plan for Pontchateau?

"Our advantage is that three of our four elite men are teammates, with Ryan Kamp joining them and being a real team player. Within our camp, Lars is the absolute leader, which is different with the Belgians. They claim to ride as a team, but they actually never do. We can use that to our advantage. I don't think Iserbyt would just let Thibau Nys win. All kinds of scenarios are possible, but this European Championship does lend itself to a tactical race."