Adrie van der Poel

Adri van der Poel (born 17 June 1959) is a retired Dutch cyclist. Van der Poel was a professional from 1981 to 2000. His biggest wins included six classics, two stages of the Tour de France and the World Cyclo-Cross Championships in 1996. He also obtained the second place and silver medal in the World Road Championships in 1983 behind Greg LeMond and five second places in the World Cyclo-Cross championships. Van der Poel also competed in cyclo-cross during the winter and obtained great results – he turned to cyclo-cross full time in the latter part of his career, winning the World Championships in 1996, and the World Cup and Superprestige classifications in 1997. He retired aged 40 after the inaugural edition of the Grand Prix Adrie Van der Poel in 2000, organised to commemorate him in his home village of Hoogerheide. Van der Poel finished third in his own race, which was won by his teammate Richard Groenendaal, and it's been a tentpole of the calendar ever since.

In 1983 he tested positive for strychnine. He said that his father-in-law had served a pigeon pie for Sunday lunch, and only when he tested positive did he realise that the pigeons had been doped with strychnine.

Family Van der Poel is the son-in-law of the famous French cyclist Raymond Poulidor. His sons David and Mathieu are also cyclists. Mathieu van der Poel became cyclo-cross world champion himself in the junior race in 2012 (Koksijde) and 2013 (Louisville, Kentucky) and then matching his father's title in 2015 (Tábor, Czech Republic), and exceeding his father, winning titles in 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024 and 2025. Mathieu is prolific also in professional road cycling, having won the UCI Road World Championships – Men's road race in 2023, along with the wins at Tour of Flanders in 2020, 2022 and 2024, Strade Bianche in 2021, Milan-Sanremo in 2023 and 2025, and Paris-Roubaix in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Van der Poel after winning the Grote Prijs Raf Jonckheere 1989 in Westrozebeke. Van der Poel's brother Jacques was also a professional cyclist from 1986 to 1992.

Major results Cyclo-cross

1983–1984 Superprestige 1st Zürich-Waid 1984–1985

Superprestige 3rd Gavere 1986–1987

1987–1988

1988–1989

Superprestige 2nd Wetzikon 1989–1990

1990–1991

Superprestige 1st Gavere 2nd Gieten

1991–1992

Superprestige 2nd Gavere

1992–1993 Superprestige 1st Valkenswaard 3rd Roma 1993–1994

UCI World Cup 2nd Loenhout 3rd Igorre Superprestige 2nd Overijse 1994–1995 3rd Overall Superprestige 1st Overijse 1st Diegem 2nd Harnes 3rd Wetzikon 1995–1996

UCI World Cup 1st Pontchâteau 3rd Overall Superprestige 1st Sint Michielsgestel 2nd Wetzikon 3rd Diegem 3rd Harnes 1st Surhuisterveen 1st Vossem 1996–1997

1st Praha 1st Koksijde 1st Overall Superprestige 1st Gieten 1st Milan 1st Sint Michielsgestel 1st Harnes 1st Woerden 1st Kalmthout 1st Nommay 1st Essen 1st Loenhout 1st Haegendorf 1997–1998 2nd Overall Superprestige 1st Diegem 1st Wetzikon 2nd Gieten 2nd Overijse 2nd Harnes 3rd Silvelle 3rd Milano 2nd Overall UCI World Cup 2nd Eschenbach 2nd Praha 2nd Koksijde 2nd Heerlen 3rd Pontchâteau 1st Harderwijk 1st Niel 1st Rijkevorsel 1st Zeddam 1st Loenhout 1st Surhuisterveen 1998–1999

UCI World Cup 1st Nommay 3rd Koksijde 3rd Overall Superprestige 1st Harnes 2nd Wetzikon 3rd Silvelle 3rd Diegem 1st Pijnacker 1st Montevrain

1999–2000 1st Harderwijk 1st Lutterbach Gazet van Antwerpen 2nd Essen 3rd Overall Superprestige 2nd Overijse 2nd Diegem 3rd Ruddervoorde 3rd Surhuisterveen 3rd Heerlen 2nd National Championships UCI World Cup 3rd Leudelange 3rd Kalmthout

Road

1980 7th Road race, Olympic Games 9th Overall Étoile des Espoirs 1981 1st Stage 1 Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré 2nd Overall Paris–Nice 1st Stage 3 2nd La Flèche Wallonne 2nd Le Samyn 3rd Road race, National Championships 4th Scheldeprijs 6th Overall Critérium International 6th Gent–Wevelgem 6th Grand Prix de Fourmies 6th Ronde van Limburg 10th Rund um den Henninger Turm 1982 1st Züri-Metzgete 1st Stage 4 Paris–Nice 2nd Grand Prix of Aargau Canton 2nd GP Union Dortmund 4th Overall Ronde van Nederland 5th Circuit des Frontières 8th Amstel Gold Race 1983 1st Grote Prijs Jef Scherens 1st Nationale Sluitingsprijs 1st Prologue Tour de Luxembourg

2nd Paris–Tours 2nd Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen 2nd Trofeo Baracchi (with Hennie Kuiper) 3rd Road race, National Championships 3rd Giro di Lombardia 3rd GP Union Dortmund 4th Overall Grand Prix du Midi Libre 4th Gent–Wevelgem 4th Paris–Brussels 4th Trofeo Laigueglia 4th Rund um den Henninger Turm 6th Paris–Roubaix 6th Grand Prix de Cannes 7th Liège–Bastogne–Liège 7th Omloop Het Volk 8th Overall Paris–Nice 9th Overall Three Days of De Panne 1984 4th Overall Tirreno–Adriatico

1st Stage 4 4th Grote Prijs Jef Scherens 6th Giro di Lombardia 6th Paris–Brussels 6th Grand Prix Impanis Tour de France

1985 1st Brabantse Pijl 1st Clásica de San Sebastián 1st Paris–Brussels 1st Scheldeprijs 1st Binche-Tournai-Binche 1st Grand Prix d'Isbergues 1st Grand Prix de Cannes Tour de Luxembourg 1st Stages 1 & 4 2nd Overall Nissan Classic 1st Stage 5 2nd Giro di Lombardia 3rd Overall Three Days of De Panne 4th Overall Ronde van Nederland 5th Omloop Het Volk 6th Paris–Tours 7th Nationale Sluitingsprijs 7th Critérium des As 9th Paris–Roubaix 10th Overall Grand Prix du Midi Libre Tour de France

1986 1st Tour of Flanders 1st Nationale Sluitingsprijs 2nd Liège–Bastogne–Liège 2nd Dwars door België 2nd Critérium des As 3rd Paris–Roubaix 3rd Züri-Metzgete 4th Paris–Tours 5th Rund um den Henninger Turm 6th Overall Nissan Classic 6th Overall Three Days of De Panne 6th Amstel Gold Race 6th Giro del Lazio 7th Milan–San Remo 7th Tour du Haut Var 7th Nice–Alassio 8th Grand Prix de Fourmies 10th Gent–Wevelgem 1987

1st Paris–Tours 1st Giro del Piemonte 1st Druivenkoers Overijse 1st Grand Prix des Fourmies 1st Grand Prix of Aargau Canton 1st Nationale Sluitingsprijs 1st Stage 9 Tour de France 3rd Overall Ronde van Nederland 4th Critérium des As 5th Overall Nissan Classic 7th Overall Tour of Sweden 1st Stage 1 & 2 8th Tour of Flanders 8th Trofeo Baracchi (with Steven Rooks) 9th Amstel Gold Race 9th Clásica de San Sebastián 9th Brabantse Pijl 1988

1st Stage 7b 1st Liège–Bastogne–Liège 1st Stage 16 Tour de France 2nd Road race, National Championships 3rd Tour of Flanders 3rd Grand Prix La Marseillaise 4th Overall Vuelta a Andalucía 1st Stage 5 4th Overall Nissan Classic 5th Grand Prix Impanis 6th Giro dell'Etna 6th Grand Prix of Aargau Canton 6th Giro del Lazio 6th Grand Prix Eddy Merckx 7th Milan–San Remo 7th Brabantse Pijl 7th Züri-Metzgete 8th Overall Tour de Luxembourg 8th Overall Three Days of De Panne 8th Druivenkoers Overijse 1989 1st Stage 6 Paris–Nice 1st Stage 5 Tour Méditerranéen 2nd Brabantse Pijl 2nd E3 Prijs Vlaanderen 3rd Omloop van de Drie Zustersteden 4th Omloop van de Vlaamse Scheldeboorden 6th Scheldeprijs 6th Veenendaal–Veenendaal 8th Binche-Tournai-Binche 10th Amstel Gold Race 1990 1st Amstel Gold Race 1st Grand Prix of Aargau Canton 1st Omloop van de Vlaamse Scheldeboorden 2nd Dwars door België 2nd Omloop Mandel-Leie-Schelde 3rd E3 Prijs Vlaanderen 4th Giro dell'Etna 5th Overall Three Days of De Panne 5th Scheldeprijs 5th Paris–Brussels 5th Tour de Berne 6th Milano–Torino 6th Coppa Bernocchi 6th Giro del Piemonte 6th Grand Prix de Fourmies 7th Omloop Het Volk 7th Veenendaal–Veenendaal 8th Paris–Roubaix 10th GP Ouest-France 10th Grand Prix de Lune 1991 1st Circuito de Getxo 1st Stage 4 Ronde van Nederland 2nd Clásica de Sabiñánigo 3rd Overall Vuelta a Andalucía 3rd Overall Tour de Luxembourg

4th Overall Nissan Classic 4th Paris–Tours 4th Grand Prix de Fourmies 4th Grand Prix d'Isbergues 5th Road race, National Championships 5th Trofeo Luis Puig 5th US Pro Championship 7th Dwars door België 8th Milano–Torino 8th Grand Prix des Amériques 10th Overall Kellogg's Tour 1st Stage 5 1992

2nd Overall Kellogg's Tour 2nd De Kustpijl 3rd Ronde van Midden-Zeeland 5th Circuito de Getxo 6th Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen 7th Dwars door België 9th Züri-Metzgete 1993 4th Veenendaal–Veenendaal 5th Paris–Roubaix 5th Paris–Tours 5th GP Industria & Artigianato di Larciano 6th Amstel Gold Race 7th Kampioenschap van Vlaanderen 1994 1st Profronde van Heerlen 2nd Nationale Sluitingsprijs 3rd Druivenkoers Overijse 3rd Grand Prix Impanis 4th De Kustpijl 5th Paris–Tours 7th Paris–Brussels 9th Cholet-Pays de la Loire 10th Grand Prix de Fourmies 1995 5th Omloop van het Houtland 7th Brabantse Pijl 8th Nokere Koerse 10th Grand Prix de Denain 1996 7th Ronde van Midden-Zeeland 10th Nationale Sluitingsprijs 1997 4th Nationale Sluitingsprijs 1998 9th De Kustpijl 1999 1st Grote Prijs Marcel Kint

Grand Tour general classification results timeline

Classics results timeline

Major championship results timeline

+ Legend — Did not compete DNF Did not finish