Cycling champion Mathieu van der Poel has leveled serious accusations against a spectator who hurled a water bottle at him during Sunday’s Paris-Roubaix race, describing the incident as “attempted manslaughter.”
The shocking moment was captured on video as the 30-year-old Dutch athlete was cycling approximately 33km from the finish line. In the footage, an arm can be seen emerging from the crowd of spectators before launching a yellow bottle directly at van der Poel’s face.
Despite the impact, which the cyclist later described as feeling “like a stone hitting my face,” van der Poel maintained his balance and composure, continuing on to win the grueling 259.2km race known as “The Hell of the North” due to its challenging terrain.
“We can’t let this pass,” van der Poel told Sporza after his victory. “It was a full water bottle and it hurt a lot. If I get that water bottle on my nose, it’s broken.”
The win marked his third consecutive triumph in the prestigious one-day classic, placing him alongside cycling legends Octave Lapize and Francesco Moser who previously achieved this remarkable feat.
However, his historic achievement was overshadowed by the bottle-throwing incident, which has prompted the cyclist to call for legal action.
“Hopefully the police can identify the man, because there has to be a trial for this,” van der Poel stated. “This is attempted manslaughter. If the UCI [Union Cycliste Internationale] does not take action, then we will do it with the team.”
During his post-race press conference, van der Poel elaborated on the severity of the situation: “It doesn’t destroy the fun I had but it’s not normal. It was a full bottle, maybe half a kilogram, and I’m riding at 50kph. It was really like a stone hitting my face.”
According to the BBC, the spectator has since surrendered to Belgian police, although authorities have not released his identity. Filiep Jodts, a public prosecutor, confirmed: “We can confirm that the man presented himself to the police. An official report was drawn up, in which his statement was recorded. The Public Prosecution Service will decide in the coming days what action should be taken.”
The UCI issued a statement Monday strongly condemning the incident: “The Union Cycliste Internationale and the associations representing the families of cycling unanimously condemn, in the strongest terms, the unacceptable behaviour of a spectator during the 122nd edition of Paris-Roubaix from the side of the road on 13 April. Such behaviour cannot be tolerated in the context of a cycling event.”
The governing body added that they “will explore, in conjunction with the competent authorities, all the legal channels at their disposal so that such behaviour is duly and severely punished, as has already been the case in the past.”
A formal investigation has been launched by French authorities into what they describe as “violence with a weapon” as they work to determine appropriate charges against the spectator.
