• The Cycling News forum is looking to add some volunteer moderators with Red Rick's recent retirement. If you're interested in helping keep our discussions on track, send a direct message to @SHaines here on the forum, or use the Contact Us form to message the Community Team.

    In the meanwhile, please use the Report option if you see a post that doesn't fit within the forum rules.

    Thanks!

Teams & Riders Official Wout Van Aert thread

Page 36 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
Google translated (edited) from Het Nieuwsblad: https://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20201120_98375159

3ad6b036-2b86-11eb-bb8e-f193d13b60d2_web_scale_0.0831774_0.0831774__.jpg


Flandrien favorites Remco Evenepoel (20) and Wout van Aert (26): “You deserve to win, Wout. I am not going to contest the result ”

Let's not be silly: it won't be a neck-and-neck election with Trump-Biden allure this year. Not after the crash in Lombardy. However, barring further accidents, the Flandrien trophy will be called the Wout van Aert-Remco Evenepoel challenge cup in the coming years. They look back on their extraordinary season in an exclusive double. “You are very welcome in my climbing train, Wout. I will welcome you with open arms. ”

Then we immediately ask: which of you will win the Flandrien trophy this year?

Evenepoel:
That's simple: Wout. Stupid question." (laughs)
Van Aert: “I think I have a better chance, but I am lucky that Remco fell in Lombardy. Although luck is of course a wrong word in that context. What I want to say: what Remco was doing before Lombardy was amazing. He won every race where he started. Without that crash, the election would have been much more exciting. With Lombardy on his honors list, we are very close in terms of results. ”

It is fashionable to challenge election results, Remco. Planning in that direction?

Evenepoel:
“Like Trump, you mean? No, I will not do that. That's a bit ridiculous. ” (laughs)

What did you think was the best performance of each other this season?

Evenepoel:
“Phew, there is a lot of choice with Wout. I find his whole evolution spectacular: the way he climbs and drops men like Bernal. Not offense, but you still weigh a few pounds more. To keep pushing that power, that's no mean feat. The best for me remains the Strade Bianche. At the time I was racing in Burgos myself. I quickly went to the bus, where I have seen the last twenty kilometers: the entire solo raid of Wout. Really powerful. Do you share my opinion, Wout? ”
Van Aert: “Yes. Both Strade and Sanremo remain the most special. Especially because you had such a long period without competition before. Everyone had questions. How do I get out of this lockdown? How is my shape? To immediately win twice, that is very special. ”

Your favorite Remco moment, Wout?

Van Aert: “I thought that super long solo in Poland was incredible. I don't even know exactly how long. (laughs) That's just dominating everyone. With your previous victories you always had the same comments: Yeah, it's not a World Tour after all and I-don't-know-who wasn't there. To come out swinging like that in Poland, in a peloton with as much quality… Fancy if you can do that.”
Evenepoel: “Thank you. In terms of performance, it indeed stands out. That ride was also quite bizarre: constant climbing at 20 percent, really hard to be alone in the lead. It was the quintessential game, driven from the support car: Thirty seconds ahead, forty-five seconds ahead - four men left in pursuit, only three left. (laughs) That gives moral. Moreover, you had previously had the crash of Fabio (Jakobsen, ed.). That also made that victory emotionally heavier and more beautiful at the same time. Just that day we had been told that he was evolving positively. All in all, that created a very special feeling. ”

Wout, when you sit down with the teammates, is the conversation often about Remco?

Van Aert:
“His name is regularly mentioned. Certainly the classification riders in the team know that he is coming. ”
Evenepoel: “Of course we often talk about Wout. After his victory in Milan-Sanremo, we already knew: what he is doing here is world class. We know how hard Julian Alaphilippe attacks. But after that we constantly had to go a step further. In the Tour he suddenly climbs with the best and then you hear at the table: The next mountain stage it will be much less. (laughs) But it never was. Eventually you will run out of words. We could only look and experience. ” (laughs)
Van Aert: “I often get the question: What kind of person is Remco? They think that as a Belgian I have special insights about this. (laughs) While that is not the case. I don't really know Remco better than they know him. ”

You both have a horror crash recently. Didn't that shared experience bring you closer together?

Van Aert: “I immediately sent Remco a message to wish him strength. As I said: we are not so close that we would suddenly start calling each other on the phone. But sending a text was the least I could do. Remco happens to be rehabilitating with the same physiotherapist who treated me. Whenever I came to Thijs (Hertsens from Move to Cure, the practice of Lieven Maesschalck, ed.), I asked how Remco was doing. ”

Evenepoel: “If Lieven puts you with the same physiotherapy, you immediately have a few percent more morale. This is going to be fine. I also had that typical cyclist reflex - or at least typically me… If an exercise didn't go well, I immediately asked: Did Wout have to do that too? And was he good at that? (Laughs) It makes sense that Wout has been rehabilitated so well in the same place.”

Wout, you said that your fall in the Tour was also a mental trauma.

Van Aert:
“After that fall, I was afraid if I only watched cycling. The World Cup in Yorkshire, with that wet weather and all those strange turns, that frightened me. I worked hard on this with my mental coach Rudy Heylen. ”
Evenepoel: “That's not an issue for me. Looking at the race was no problem and cycling again immediately felt very familiar. Here in Spain I have no fear in the descent, I take my turns as before.”

You told "Sport / Voetbalmagazine" that you followed EMDR therapy to deal with your fall, Wout. What does that mean?

Van Aert: “EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) is a technique in which you talk about the incident while moving your eyes. You have to ask Rudy for the technical explanation, but it has to do with trauma stored in the anterior lobe of the brain. It's not hocus pocus. You have not suddenly forgotten that you have fallen, but it takes away the sharp edges of the trauma. ”
Evenepoel: “My advantage is that I lost part of the fall. It literally did not stick. But of course I sat with Michaël Verschaeve, the team's psychologist. He gave me tips to make things easier to process. ”

Have you seen the footage of the fall?

Evenepoel: “They have shown them a hundred million times on the news. I couldn't ignore it. What frustrates me is that I just can't get past that wall. My wheel has passed it, but I hit it with my leg. It saves three or four centimeters. That's why I'm a bit angry with myself. ”

You have undoubtedly heard it in Spain: Sven Vanthourenhout is the new Belgian national coach. Good choice?

Evenepoel: “Certainly. Sven has been in the race long enough to know how to build a team. In recent years he was already… the T2, they would say in football. It is a good step. Without prejudice to Rik (Verbrugghe, ed.), Who has been very successful at European and World Championships. ”
Van Aert: “It is extra easy for me that I can work with the same coach on the cross and on the road. Sven is the right man in the right place. When he was still assistant to Kevin and Rik, the riders also felt that he already arranged a lot of practical things. ”

As Belgian leaders, are you consulted when the national coach is appointed?

Van Aert: “I had some contact with Frederik Broché at the World Cup in Imola. Our opinion is heard, but it is the union that decides. ”
Evenepoel: “I didn't hear Frederik. Not for a long time actually.

However, you will often be on the road with the national team next season. The Games are a great goal for both of you.

Van Aert: “Tokyo is indeed high on my list. The Games capture the imagination. That is the only time for me that I follow almost all sports. In front of the television for two weeks. ” (laughs)
Evenepoel: “What Greg has achieved in Rio, isn't that wonderful? He is on my list of Olympic heroes, together with Usain Bolt. ”

To what extent do you know the Tokyo time trial course? It would be tough, not so much tailored to world champion Filippo Ganna.

Evenepoel:
“I spoke about it in Argentina with Maciej Bodnar, who had already done the test event. He says it's less tough than you'd think based on the profile. But every meter uphill is in favor of the lighter driver. Ganna is the man to beat anyway. We will hardly have to focus on anyone else. ”
Van Aert: “But whether a difficult course really plays to his disadvantage? In the Giro Ganna wins the long time trial just as well. There you also had a steep climb on the way and he rode up faster than the classification riders. You can't say he doesn't stand a chance if it's difficult. If you see what steps he has taken, he will always remain the biggest competitor. ”

There is a lot to do about the Tour-Games combination. That would hardly be feasible.

Van Aert:
“Recovering from the Tour in a few days is difficult anyway, and now you also have a trip to Tokyo. That will require a lot of preparation anyway. We have not yet discussed my program with the team, but I will have to make choices. I prefer to do Tour and Play, but it is just not an easy combination. Certainly because there is also the World Championship in Belgium in the autumn. ”

Are you also going to the Games via the Tour, Remco?

Evenepoel:
“We still have to talk about that. It is a big step to ride the Tour as the first big lap. And I would like to get to that first big round this year. (laughs) At the moment I think: rather not a Tour next year. ”

In Tokyo you are rivals in the time trial and teammates in the road trial. Is that the idea?

Evenepoel:
“We have to perform as a country. Push each other forward in every possible way. Two medals in the time trial, wouldn't everyone be happy with that? ”
Van Aert: “I agree with Remco. Cycling has really become a team sport. If you accept a selection, you also accept to race as a country. I've said it before: if Remco is in perfect shape, the road ride will suit him even better than me. Then I feel free to help to get him to a medal. The time trial is a different story: there we can support each other in the preparation, but after the starting shot it is everyone for themselves. (laughs) You don't have to hold back for someone else at all. ”

It is striking that you have ridden very little against each other so far. Will we see more duels in 2021?

Van Aert:
“It is true that we have not run into each other much yet. But Remco is of course also not yet long. (laughs) Next year we will still be on a different track. I focus on the Flemish classics, Remco on the more difficult classics. We are already missing each other there. ”

You have already said that a stage race like Tirreno-Adriatico could be a goal. In those kinds of games we can still look forward to a duel Van Aert vs. Evenepoel.

Van Aert: "That could be, yes."
Evenepoel: “If you see how he flew around in the Tour ... It is up to us to drop him. Super fun, right? Also for you. You are going to be able to fill the papers. Which may also be a lot of work, of course. ” (laughs)

To conclude: historically Deceuninck - Quick-Step is a team that focuses on the classics. Conversely, Jumbo-Visma's expertise seems to be mainly in the GT's. Would you be even better riders if you changed teams?

Van Aert:
“Not a good idea. It's not about how the outside world views a squad, it's about how you feel within the squad. And that is good for both of us. We go for grand tours, but classics are not secondary. I'm fine, I don't have to change. ”
Evenepoel: “I always let you in my climbing train, Wout. I will receive you with open arms. ” (laughs) "
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: BlueRoads
Lengthy interview by Red Bull (one of his CX sponsors):

Which tour de force in the Tour de France are you most proud of?
"The last mountain stage where I finished third, I think. I then crossed the finish line in the group with favorites. I never dreamed that it would be within my reach. I am very proud of that."

 
He was very strong that day. Delivering a great performance working for the team uphill and that until shortly before the last col transition. But he would never have finished in the favorites if he hadn't been able to take advantage of the cars during the chaotic finale (there was a testimony that he had hung on a car), and if he hadn't joined his teammate Dumoulin, who had a flat.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: Sandisfan
Don't go to Ineos Wout! They are not a classics team and will kill your soul. Their training methods don't work for classics riders. You are a big star and you need a team that will support your ambitions. You need the freedom to call your own shots. They won't let you go for the Green Jersey at the Tour de France and you'll be stuck babysitting Bernal or some other little weak climber.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Sandisfan
Don't go to Ineos Wout! They are not a classics team and will kill your soul. Their training methods don't work for classics riders. You are a big star and you need a team that will support your ambitions. You need the freedom to call your own shots. They won't let you go for the Green Jersey at the Tour de France and you'll be stuck babysitting Bernal or some other little weak climber.

Jumbo aren't a classics team, either. I don't think much would change for him if he did the switch.

Even Ineos can see that he is too good not to be allowed a main peak in the spring.
 
Jumbo aren't a classics team, either. I don't think much would change for him if he did the switch.

Even Ineos can see that he is too good not to be allowed a main peak in the spring.

I'd rate his potential support at Ineos in Luke Rowe, Gianni Moscon, Tom Pidcock, etc as better than at Jumbo. Ineos has always had a great potential supporting cast for a classics star just never the right rider.
 

TRENDING THREADS