Wout van Aert overcame a abdomen bug that delayed his cyclocross season debut and confirmed spectacular kind on Friday on the Exact Cross in Loenhout. However, a run-in with an inattentive spectator ruined his possibilities at touchdown on the rostrum behind solo winner Mathieu van der Poel (Alpecin-Deceuninck).
Van Aert was chasing with Laurens Sweeck (Crelan-Corendon) and Thibau Nys (Baloise-Trek) half a minute behind the world champion on the ultimate lap when Nys overtook him in a flip, forcing Van Aert nearer to the boundaries the place he collided with the fan and crashed.
“It definitely wasn’t Thibau’s fault – he did a pleasant manoeuvre to get to the entrance,” Van Aert mentioned in line with Sporza.be. “Only I used to be on the skin of the bend. And there was a fan hanging fully over the course. Unfortunately I got here into contact with him.
“Too unhealthy, as a result of I might have ridden for second or third place. But hey, I’m pleased with the way it went. I had a profitable day.”
The Exact Cross spherical was Van Aert’s first race since he suffered a knee damage in a crash through the Vuelta a España, and the primary of simply 5 deliberate competitions for the ‘cross season.
After ending on the rostrum in eight of 9 races final 12 months, Van Aert earned a entrance row begin however misplaced positions as he struggled to clip into his pedal.
“I wished to get off to begin, but it surely took a very long time earlier than I obtained into my pedal,” Van Aert defined. “I assumed: that is already a nasty begin. But abruptly there was house on the left and so I unexpectedly dove into the sector on the entrance.”
The tight course and pleasure for the arrival of a fan favorite into the ‘kerstperiode’ races made for a festive environment, with a wave of deafening cheers following Van Aert across the circuit.
“I felt it,” Van Aert mentioned. “That felt good. I felt good in that first lap. But when Mathieu accelerated, I seen that technically, I used to be actually not ok.”
Van Aert was using on the entrance earlier than Van der Poel’s profitable transfer, however selected the incorrect line in a flip and misplaced some floor. Sweeck managed to catch Van der Poel after the Dutchman had a mechanical however misplaced contact by the tip of the third lap.
“Fortunately, I had associate in Thibau Nys. That’s how we obtained again to Sweeck,” Van Aert mentioned.
The trio continued to push Van der Poel within the closing lap however the conflict with the spectator knocked Van Aert out of the struggle for the rostrum.
“It’s too unhealthy, however I nonetheless had a profitable day.”
