Jonas Vingegaard will not be the one rider on a profitable comeback path at Visma-Lease A Bike on this yr’s Tour de France and Belgian star Wout van Aert offered the biking world with one other reminder of that at Pau, the place he claimed second on a frantic diminished bunch dash behind fellow-Belgian Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck).
Van Aert’s unhealthy crash throughout Dwars door Vlaanderen in March pressured him to skip his unique goal for the primary half of the season, the Giro d’Italia. But with a 3rd, a sixth, a fourth and now two second locations on this yr’s Tour de France, Van Aert is clearly in flying kind in his different pathway in direction of the fast-approaching Olympic Games. That his newest success got here in the identical metropolis of Pau the place he suffered a large crash and accidents within the 2019 Tour de France throughout a time trial solely helped underline that reality.
Nor was it solely the dash near-miss that gave Van Aert further encouragement on Friday. Throughout the whole stage, run off at a ferocious pace after Adam Yates (UAE Team Emirates) bought away in an echelon, Van Aert had been within the thick of the motion.
He each wrenched the peloton aside when Visma-Lease a Bike opted to chase down the Briton’s transfer after which chased down some late breakaways after a big entrance group fashioned earlier than sprinting to second for a second day operating. All in all, maybe the perfect indicators but of fast-rising kind for the Belgian allrounder.
“It was a very basic combat – some wind, hilly terrain and flat-out racing from the gun, so I actually loved it and likewise as a group, we had been actually good,” Van Aert advised reporters.
He agreed that for Visma, the early echelon with Yates “was not an excellent group for us to have there in entrance, each for the stage win and Yates pushing to take again time on GC. It was not straightforward to regulate these conditions however we had been fast to react to the crosswinds, we knew we needed to place the opposite guys within the gutter and that is what we did.”
“So we had been at all times assured we may make it again and it was additionally in my favour to have a tough race. In the tip, the boys actually managed the race to ensure it was a dash. So it is a disgrace I could not pull it off.”
Van Aert had vociferously complained about Philipsen’s sprinting final week when the Alpecin-Deceuninck racer was relegated due to an irregular manoeuvre. But he had no such complaints this time.
“I got here out in entrance just a bit too early, after the group did an excellent job,” Van Aert recounted. “[Teammate Christophe] Laporte did an excellent job, however at a sure level he could not sustain there, as is regular, and I used to be on the market within the wind only a bit too early.”
“I needed to wait slightly bit at 350 metres to go as a result of that might have been method too early. Then Philipsen got here flying previous me and afterwards, it was inconceivable to move him. But it was a good dash.”
“We’d quite win than end second, in fact,” mentioned sports activities director Grischa Niermann, “however we might be pleased with Wout and the entire group did an excellent job. The sprints are additionally a objective now with Wout as a result of he’s feeling good, and as he is proven with two second locations. I believe he’d quite change these two locations to 1 first place, however it’s like it’s, he was actually shut and there can be extra probabilities for him to return.”
Given his vastly and rapidly enhancing situation, the query arises of what Van Aert can be able to doing within the two mountain levels which the Tour will sort out this weekend. He agreed that he wish to be supporting Vingegaard once more, however the Belgian mentioned, he is additionally bought his personal targets within the eight levels remaining.
“I hope to play my position supporting Jonas, and one other mountain race begins tomorrow [Saturday]. But I additionally hope to win a stage at this level, as a result of within the second week of the Tour, I’ve felt good. It’s shut, it is within the legs, however you even have to point out you are able to do it on the bike.”