A calamity of errors suggests Dutch cyclists are cursed at the Tokyo Olympics

• Dutch cyclists have had a tough go of it at Tokyo 2020.
• One rider crashed when a ramp was removed while another smashed into a bumbling official.
• A third rider thought she had won gold only to later learn she finished second.

There is not any other way to say this: Dutch cyclists at the Olympics have been cursed.

After a calamity of errors pushed Dutch riders out of contention again and again and again in Tokyo, one can only turn to the supernatural to explain their misfortune.

Like any curse, blood oath, or haunting from beyond, the signs of the paranormal started small.

Dutch cyclist Annemiek van Vleuten momentarily believed she won gold in the women's road race at Tokyo 2020, only to learn later another rider had already crossed the finish line.

The mistake was a result of a quirk in the Olympic rules regarding cycling.

Unlike other competitions, at the Olympics race radios are not permitted to ease communication for riders on the course. When Van Vleuten made her break from the front of the pack, she didn't realize one rider was still in front of her.

"There was a lot of confusion and not only with me," Van Vleuten said in a postrace press conference, according to Cyclingnews. "It was in the Dutch team but also the other [countries]. In the most important race, you're not allowed to ride with communication, which we usually do. It should make the race more interesting, but it made the race more confusing."

You might be thinking: "Small potatoes. This isn't paranormal. This is simply an unfortunate turn of events due to the nuances of this specific competition."

READ MORE: The updated Tokyo 2020 medal table

If our story ended there, you might be right.

But just hours later, another Dutch cyclist, Mathieu Van der Poel, suffered a scary crash in the men's mountain-bike event.

On the first lap of the race, Van der Poel tumbled onto the rocks at one of the most difficult drops on the course, losing his spot among the leaders.

-Bas Tietema (@BasTietema) July 26, 2021

After, Van der Poel blamed his fall on a ramp that had been on the course for practice runs but was removed for the medal race.

"People close to me know how hard I worked for this and how bad I wanted it," Van der Poel wrote in a post to his Instagram story. "I could ride the track with my eyes closed, but I didn't know they would remove this ramp on race day."

-daniel mcmahon (@cyclingreporter) July 26, 2021

After the race, Van der Poel's coach said his rider should have known that the ramp would not be there during the final.

"In training, there was a bridge to prevent falls. That is normal, just like it is normal for them to remove it before the race," national coach Gerben de Knegt told Dutch media, VeloNews reported. "We've discussed this a dozen times at the time, so Mathieu knew that."

A world-class cyclist may have made a mental error in one of the biggest races of his life that cost him a shot at a medal, even after being reminded a dozen times of the potential danger. It's also possible that a higher power is at work and that higher power was not done when it sent Van der Poel tumbling into the rocks.

Next up was a BMX racing event, where Niek Kimmann collided with a race marshal wandering across the course in the middle of the competition.

-7Olympics (@7olympics) July 27, 2021

Why was the official walking across the track at that particular time? And more important, how is it that all three of these calamitous events have been suffered by Dutch riders?

At this point, I can only assume you're beginning to put the puzzle together.

Whether by curse, hex, or otherworldly order, something has happened to the Dutch cycling team.

In case you needed further convincing, another Dutch cyclist, Anna van der Breggen, was stopped by security because she was not recognized as an Olympic athlete.

During the confrontation, Vn der Breggen reportedly fell from her bike (but was not injured).

A Japanese cycling coach posted a video to Twitter showing security surrounding the Dutch team.

-Kyosuke Takei (@takeikyosuke) July 27, 2021

The matter was cleared up, and Van der Breggen was able to carry on in her race. Officials at Fuji International Speedway, where the incident took place, issued an apology to the Dutch team, according to the AP.

Each anecdote would make for an odd moment in the course of one country's Olympic journey. But together, the truth is impossible to deny.

A gold medal thought to be won, unwittingly lost. A ghost ramp that disappears when you need it most. A freak collision and an unwarranted security stop.

The vengeance of the outer realms is more powerful than we can comprehend.

But just as you were finally reaching the appropriate level of concern, I'm delighted to inform you that recent events have offered hope for the Dutch that whatever dark magic was working against them has now been lifted.

Annemiek van Vleuten, the subject of the first trial of the curse, found redemption as she took gold in the women's individual time trial.

Further, Dutch teammate Anna van der Breggen finished third for bronze, despite her mishap with security earlier.

-daniel mcmahon (@cyclingreporter) July 28, 2021

Hopefully this means that the cloud hanging over Dutch cycling has now been lifted.

Whatever offering the Dutch team made to the great beyond after their trials and tribulations appears to have been accepted.

Still, let this be a lesson to the cycling nations of the world.

There are powers beyond the pedals that cannot be controlled, and their vengeance is mighty.