Home » Postponement, not cancellation for Mirjam Pol

Postponement, not cancellation for Mirjam Pol

The 47th Dakar will start 3 January 2025 in Bisha, Saudi Arabia. It promises to be an interesting, tough rally, including five divided stages in which the motorbikes drive their own route, separate from the trucks and cars. Not only does this improve safety, it also makes navigating the cars and trucks a lot more difficult as it is no longer possible to just follow the motorbikes tracks blindfolded. An edition of the world’s toughest rally in which Mirjam Pol, world champion and winner of the women’s classification of several Dakar rallies, could just end up with a very good result.

Postponement, not cancellation 
Very unfortunate that Pol will not be able to attend for the second consecutive year due to Post-Covid. But for her, it feels like a postponement and not a cancellation. “Of course I don’t have eternal life, but I had given myself, at this level, under normal circumstances another 5 or 6 years or so. So… that means that, for now at least, I just plan to return to Dakar on the bike, provided my recovery sets in within that time of course”, she reveals.

‘The real heroes’ a dying breed?
Almost every category will feature Dutch nationals in the edition starting in January, except for ‘the real heroes’-category. This year, as well as last year, there are no Dutch participants among the motorbikes. As a result, it seems to be becoming a bit of a dying breed…. 
For the athlete from Twente, perhaps an extra motivation? “I think it’s a real shame that there are no other Dutch participants in the motor category. While we’ve always had our share of that. That alone is another extra reason for me to get back on the bike”, Pol said.

2024… wrap up quickly and move on to 2025!
Despite her being ill, the year 2024 has also flown by again. And it really wasn’t all that bad. Down-to-earth as ever, Pol again has an entirely unique take on 2024. “Yes, regards to my health and on the sports front, it was obviously not the best year, but I maintain that things could always be worse and sometimes people seem to forget that. There are also Post-Covid patients who really can do nothing at all and spend all day in a dark room in bed. The year obviously went differently than I had expected and hoped, but I have a lot of lovely people and distractions around me which makes the whole situation a lot less difficult. Saying that, I am now happy to say goodbye to 2024! And for 2025 I say; new lap, new changes!”