Where will Mathieu van der Poel, Tom Pidcock and Wout van Aert clash this winter?

The so-called ‘big three’ of men’s cyclo-cross will face off just four times this winter, with Tom Pidcock (Ineos Grenadiers), Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Wout van Aert’s (Jumbo-Visma) schedules now confirmed.

The trio will go head-to-head four times, all over the festive season, with no World Championships battle on the cards.

Van der Poel and Van Aert revealed their ‘cross calendars earlier in the season, with six clashes forecast between the Dutch and Belgian pair. With Tom Pidcock also announcing his plans on Wednesday, it’s been confirmed that he will also be present at four of those six races.

Read more: Tom Pidcock to race six cyclo-cross World Cup events over the winter

Pidcock will start his campaign in Herentals at the X2O Badkamers Trofee on December 16, where neither Van der Poel nor Van Aert will be present.

The first three-way clash will come on December 23 at the UCI World Cup in Antwerp, with Boxing Day also set for a three-man showdown at the World Cup in Gavere.

The next World Cup, in Hulst, is also set to welcome all three riders, before their final showdown is currently scheduled for the famous X2O Trofee in Koksijde, which takes place partly on a sandy beach.

At present, Wout van Aert is set to finish his campaign at Koksijde, but may also opt to ride the World Cups in Zonhoven and Benidorm, where Van der Poel and Pidcock will be in action, taking the possible total up to six clashes.

Only Van der Poel is currently set to ride the World Championships in Tábor in February, with the rest of the trio planning to skip the season-ender.

In the 2022/23 season, the three riders competed against each other seven times, with Van der Poel and Van Aert facing off 10 times, so this year is a decline, with all three riders citing an increased focus on road racing as a reason why their ‘cross participation has had to shrink.

Schedule of men’s ‘big three’ events 2023/2024:

• 23 December: World Cup Antwerpen
• 26 December: World Cup Gavere
• 30 December: World Cup Hulst
• 4 January 2024: X2O Trofee Koksijde
• 7 January 2024: World Cup Zonhoven (TBC)
• 21 January 2024: World Cup Benidorm (TBC)

Women’s ‘big three’ schedules less concrete

On the women’s side, a similar ‘big three’ emerged in the 2022/23 season, with Fem van Empel (Jumbo-Visma), Puck Pieterse (Fenix-Deceuninck) and Shirin van Anrooij (Baloise Trek Lions) winning virtually all the elite-level races last winter between them.

However, their forecast of clashes for this season is less clear, and it is not yet known which race will be the first time all three riders line up against each other.

Only Van Empel has confirmed her concrete schedule for the next few weeks, with Pieterse and Van Anrooij keeping their plans closer to their chest. However, we do know that Pieterse and Van Anrooij are back in ‘cross mode after taking longer post-road season breaks than Van Empel.

Pieterse was back in action for the first time at the UCI World Cup in Troyes, whilst Van Anrooij is due to make her return to ‘cross this weekend at the World Cup in Flamanville. Van Empel and Pieterse are set to skip Flamanville, though, so the location of the first three-way clash is yet to be determined.

Despite Van Empel, Pieterse and Van Anrooij being labelled as the women’s ‘big three’ last season, the racing so far has shown that Lucinda Brand (Baloise Trek Lions) and Ceylin del Carmen Alvarado (Alpecin-Deceuninck) are both also in the frame, with the pair taking big victories and unsettling the ‘big three’ domination we saw last season.