The coronavirus pandemic (Covid-19) has left the rest of the spring cycling calendar up in the air, and riders everywhere are struggling with uncertain race plans.

Alpecin-Phoenix star Mathieu van der Pol missed the Omloop Het Nieuwsblad due to the flu and was competing in the Volta Ao Algarve before a race cancellation ruined his March plans.

The Dutch rider has the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix, Brabant Pays, Amstel Gold Race, and La Flèche Wallonne left on his calendar, but the Giro d'Italia in May has already been postponed and is unlikely to be raced in April.

"Nobody knows when the next race will be," van der Pol told Het Nieuwsblad (open in new tab). 'So it's difficult. 'What do I train for?' Even the Olympics aren't a sure thing anymore."

"There's nothing you can do as a rider. So I try not to get too worked up. I didn't even think the first cancellation in Italy was a disaster. I was sick anyway and needed some time

"But now. The hardest thing is to know what kind of training to do in the next few weeks. Which part of the world is the peak ...... When can I resume, who knows at this point?"

Van der Pol said he has not yet given up on spring, even if the race he is targeting is likely to be postponed. The Tour of Flanders is still on, but with its cancellation looming, he wonders when the race will resume. Either way, he said, it will be difficult to compete there, given the paucity of race days.

"It would be very punishing if we were still racing there," he said. 'But what would the first race be? Roubaix? The Ardennes Classic.' If that's the case, I'll definitely put everything on the line there."

"I'm not going to give up on spring yet. But training will be difficult. In a way, it would be better if you could clarify as soon as possible and say there will be no more races in the spring. Then I can go into rest now and get back on track for, say, the summer."

Van der Pol said he is motivated to work again and build on his foundation after his illness, adding that he will continue training in the meantime.

"For some riders, it's really hard to get motivated. In a way, I'm still lucky. Thanks to my illness, I can use all my training to build my foundation again. Over the next few days I will make time, train, and get in shape."

"You have to wait. That's the hardest thing to do. The only thing I know is that tomorrow I will get on my bike and practice for hours. But why? For what?