BRUSSELS – Dutch cyclist Mathieu van der Poel expressed regret on Tuesday after his world championships in Australia were scuppered by a late night altercation with pranksters landed him in a police station.
Van der Poel was charged with two counts of common assault after confronting two teenaged girls interrupting his sleep on the eve of Sunday’s elite road race by knocking repeatedly on his hotel door.
Arrested and taken to a police station until 4 a.m., the 27-year-old, one of the favourites to take the world title, started the race only to retire in the early stages.
Police allege the cyclist chased the girls into…
