Wout van Aert (Visma-Lease a Bike) has considerably performed down expectations for his sixth straight begin within the Tour de France, saying that whereas comfortable to be collaborating, his type is on no account near what he would love.
The 29-year-old Belgian champion has gained 9 phases of the Tour thus far in his profession. Perhaps no different rider has accomplished so on such different terrain lately, starting from time trials to bunch sprints to a solo win on a mountain stage in 2021 that included a double ascent of the much-feared Mont Ventoux.
But after a troublesome first half of the season that noticed him crash badly at Dwars door Vlaanderen and miss out on his preliminary goal of a Giro d’Italia debut, Van Aert mentioned on Thursday that he’s not setting a excessive bar for himself on the Tour. However, he additionally recognised he was comfortable merely to have made it to the Grand Départ at Firenze, such have been the challenges he skilled within the first half of 2024.
“This 12 months has been robust for me to this point,” Van Aert instructed reporters. “So sadly, I can’t have the identical targets as different seasons within the Tour.”
“I’ve by no means began the Tour de France in such poor type, and that feels uncommon. I did a number of work following my crash, however I’m nonetheless in not such fine condition.”
As for what he can obtain within the upcoming Tour de France, Van Aert performed down comparisons with 2021, when he had an operation on his appendix earlier than the race however then went on to win three phases. This time, he mentioned, he was getting back from a a lot harder situation when it comes to bodily accidents and restoration. Consquently, describing what his choices actually are within the upcoming Tour could possibly be neatly summed up in three phrases: ‘Wait and see.’
“I’ll discover out throughout the race, and see how a lot I can progress, however meantime I’ll have a group position. First on the flat, then hopefully on the climbs. And then if I can have an opportunity within the sprints or in different phases – that’d be nice.”
Van Aert identified that such a troublesome begin to the Tour de France, with two very hilly phases in Italy, will deliver an on the spot sequence of reference factors for his underlying type. “You’ll know in a short time how effectively you’re going,” he mentioned.
While Van Aert will attempt to get the utmost out of his participation in biking’s greatest stage race, be it in a help position or one thing extra highprofile, his upcoming Olympics participation can be very a lot in the back of his thoughts. Earlier this week, the Belgian Federation introduced that Van Aert can be racing each the time trial and the street race, alongside Remco Evenepoel (Soudal-QuickStep).
“Due to my crash this spring, racing right here is the best choice with the Games in thoughts,” Van Aert argued, “however racing right here in any case can be crucial in itself. You can’t merely journey the Tour in a relaxed means, simply to construct for different targets.”
“With any luck, we’ll end the Tour in fine condition and able to swap focus to the Olympics. And I’m happy with what I’ve been in a position to obtain in these final two months, too. It’s unattainable to say but, although, whether or not I can do one thing particular within the Tour.”
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