Wout Van Aert took a daring and revolutionary choice to trip the 2024 Paris Olympics time trial with double disc wheels and was rewarded with a bronze medal behind fellow Belgian Remco Evenepoel and Italy’s Filippo Ganna.
Riders usually use double disc wheels on the monitor however want a spoked entrance wheel for higher bike dealing with within the usually variable circumstances of time trials on the highway.
Other riders had questioned Van Aert’s choice to make use of double disc wheels citing the chance on the corners and lack of acceleration. It appeared particularly audacious on the rain-soaked Paris course, the place a variety of different riders crashed at velocity in each the boys’s and ladies’s time trial.
Van Aert may maybe use his cyclocross bike expertise to take additional dangers along with his double disc set-up. He threw warning to the wind, adopted the science and opted for a double disc set-up. It will certainly encourage different riders to hunt out the same marginal achieve in skilled races.
“I believe my set-up was tremendous quick,” Van Aert defined within the post-race press convention, impressing even gold medalist Evenepoel, with the watts he allegedly gained.
“When we examined it within the wind tunnel, there have been completely different wind angles and speeds, however double discs have been 17 watts quicker than a standard time trial wheel. That’s rather a lot.”
Van Aert gained the ultimate time trial stage on the 2021 and 2022 Tour de France and was second to Ganna in each the 2020 and 2021 time trial world championships. Yet since then had centered on his Classic marketing campaign and different targets, whereas his 2024 season was massively disrupted by his high-speed crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen in late March.
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“I’m actually proud to have a medal once more,” he stated.
“It feels to me a bit as a shock, as a result of in the previous couple of seasons it was more durable for me to compete towards actual specialists. I used to be bold however I believed there have been at the least three guys stronger than me. “This medal is a shock but it surely makes me actually pleased to be within the combine once more.”
“I usually had the sensation I had too many targets to give attention to and was by no means in a position to practice one month absolutely for a time trial and to work on all the main points which might be crucial.
“That’s why I used to be additionally not likely assured going to this Olympics. My planning modified over the season after the crash. I accomplished the Tour however I wasn’t in a position to practice correctly on the TT bike. Yet we managed to get all the main points proper. Now my confidence is again.”
Van Aert spent a number of days in hospital and wanted surgical procedure after he fractured his collarbone, seven ribs and his sternum within the Dwars door Vlaanderen crash. He wanted a month of rehabilitation earlier than he may begin easy coaching and make yet one more comeback from harm and defeat.
“I believe that is a part of my character. I’ve moments when you don’t need it anymore however then the following day you need to attempt it once more,” he defined.
“My solely expertise is driving a motorbike. There’s only a deep want inside myself to maintain on making an attempt and I’m particularly happy with my efficiency. This means loads, not solely after crashing out in spring.
“The Olympics is the largest occasion there’s in sport. For us in biking, it is all the time a bit underrated as a result of it is simply a part of the season. But whenever you’re right here you begin to realise that it is method larger than all the opposite races you do.
“It’s particularly good for Belgium to begin the primary day of the Olympics with two medals. We’re not a extremely massive nation, so hopefully it’s a kickstart for all the opposite athletes to observe us and to deliver residence as many medals as attainable.”
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