Teams & Riders Official Wout Van Aert thread

[topcat]

van Aert is improving and anyone with a heart would like to see him do well in de ronde. I want him to come back because his palmares is bare compared to his talents.
(A former detractor who is now a van Aert fan)

 

[Gratemans]

Powless was consistently rested and strong, all day. Wout used what he had too early and didn't let his teammates know he was done with 10km to go so they could attack Powless. Really bad tactics to take anyone to the line when it's a 3 on 1.

The first part seems a bit unfair to me. You're suggesting he knew he didn't have the legs but didn't tell his teammates? That would be pretty uncharacteristic for him.
I think he just had faith in his usual sprint, but didn't take into account that he had a different run-up to the classics compared to all previous years (barring last years approach ofcourse, which they never got to know how his form would develop because he crashed out). Or his sprint has deterioted because of a different training focus.

But the second part of your post? Yeah, they messed up big-time. A 3-against-1 on this course? You should never, ever lose that.

What should have happened from a Visma pov:
Wout: "I feel good, I wanna go for a sprint"
Team car: "Allright, but let Tiesj and Matteo wear him out first"

Simple as that. The team did screw up as a whole.

 

[Sciatic]

Narcissism masquerading as concern.

Unfortunate because I quite like her usually.

If you mean because of having a photo of herself?, I don't get that (narcissism) sense at all. Think of every sports column, editorial column, etc. that have a picture of the writer and not a picture of the topic or person they are writing about. Pretty standard journalism these days.

 

[ChewbaccaDefense]

He wasn't in the race. Still recovering I think. Supposed to be back for Amstel Gold.

Guys, Amstel Gold is on Easter Sunday...this post is comedy gold. I'd like my flowers.

 

[AmRacer]

Guys, Amstel Gold is on Easter Sunday...this post is comedy gold. I'd like my flowers.

I thought you meant Remco, but he's up for Brabantse

 

[Cookster15]

You weren’t aware of that when you saw the audience during RVV? There’s nothing like it

Tbh I haven’t got so involved in RVV until this year. Now, maybe because of the MVDP / Pogacar rivalry and buildup, I have a much better appreciation of this monument.

Some of us on the other side of the planet who have never been to Europe let alone Belgium are still learning about professional cycling - largely thanks to the internet.

 

[SafeBet]

Demi's take on it is worth a read

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It's all in there really.
You can overanalyse the situation for days and from a rational point of view it was the wrong decision by both WVA and the car.
But there's an emotional component that drives many of our choices and I'm sympathetic towards Van Aert after the horrible year he's had. If anything I'll cheer for him more after this failure. The way he admitted his mistake in the interview broke my heart.

 

[Rackham]

It's all in there really.
You can overanalyse the situation for days and from a rational point of view it was the wrong decision by both WVA and the car.
But there's an emotional component that drives many of our choices and I'm sympathetic towards Van Aert after the horrible year he's had. If anything I'll cheer for him more after this failure. The way he admitted his mistake in the interview broke my heart.

WvA missed a trick, i.e. he should have said he was trying to win for his daughter, or uncle, or someone's birthday. Maybe as a tribute to a teammate as well.

Worked well enough for his fisherman teammate once upon a time in the Vuelta.

 

[Boes]

What hits me the most is that he's been sprinting backwards all year.
His only weapen to win against MVP and Poggy is to somehow outlast and then settle the sprint (like he did in E3 2023).

That is no longer an option. I can only imagine it has something to do with his Vuelta fall last year and knee injuries considering he was still decent in sprinting in last years Vuelta.

 

[ChasingPotatoes]

What hits me the most is that he's been sprinting backwards all year.
His only weapen to win against MVP and Poggy is to somehow outlast and then settle the sprint (like he did in E3 2023).

That is no longer an option. I can only imagine it has something to do with his Vuelta fall last year and knee injuries considering he was still decent in sprinting in last years Vuelta.

I believe so too (that his knee is a factor). Cramping in a 180K race is something you don't expect from a rider like WvA. There are some things that are worth considering:
1. it was a long and though finale for the 3 Visma riders. They forced it from a long way out, and they had to battle for those first 30-40 seconds for a long time, and even until the final 10K, they didn't get more than a minute. It's only the second race after his Tenerife camp and by far the hardest he did.
2. if he still has power loss in his right leg, it's much easier to overcompensate and cramp.
3. he has been on shorter cranks I read, but since when? And are those influencing either his cramping, or his sprint or both?

 

[Bolder]

van Aert is improving and anyone with a heart would like to see him do well in de ronde. I want him to come back because his palmares is bare compared to his talents.
(A former detractor who is now a van Aert fan)

Me too. It's funny how adversity (provided it's handled with humility and grace) can elevate an athlete in our eyes. It's that old "sport as metaphor for life" thing.

That said, I wonder if he has some kind of iliac artery issue? His dropoff in form could be the culmulative effect of his injuries, more likely -- he's a big guy and has taken some huge hits over his career. His TdF TT crash was really horrible and it could be a long-term recurrence.

 

[Ilmaestro99]

van Aert is improving and anyone with a heart would like to see him do well in de ronde. I want him to come back because his palmares is bare compared to his talents.
(A former detractor who is now a van Aert fan)

Oh my god man youve gone woke

 

[Ilmaestro99]

Attack him in turn until he cracks and someone gets a gap. Let Powless try and close the gap (which he shouldn't be able to do anymore at one point after numerous attacks) creating a new situation with 1 visma in front and two in Powless' wheel. Then repeat the same process until the second guy gets a gap. Then it is 2 guys ahead with 1v1 behind and after all the efforts, the last man should also be able to drop Powless. The 3 vismas can then wait on each other and clear the podium, however they see fit.

The fact that this even needs to be explained is bizarre.

How do people race big classics, or spend years watching classics, and not understand how to play the numbers to win these races?

 

[gregrowlerson]

Jesus Christ...

I was about to say that low is the new high might become our new prophet, but I wasn't going to go quite this far.

 

[topcat]

I watched the race live (watching a re-run doesn't count). When the yellow with a tinge of pink breakaway formed, I thought it would be funny if Powless won. But the way it happened wasn't funny, it was sad. I'm hoping Visma animate the race on Sunday and send Jorge on the attack (he can help Alaphilippe).

 

[Berniece]

I believe so too (that his knee is a factor). Cramping in a 180K race is something you don't expect from a rider like WvA. There are some things that are worth considering:
1. it was a long and though finale for the 3 Visma riders. They forced it from a long way out, and they had to battle for those first 30-40 seconds for a long time, and even until the final 10K, they didn't get more than a minute. It's only the second race after his Tenerife camp and by far the hardest he did.
2. if he still has power loss in his right leg, it's much easier to overcompensate and cramp.
3. he has been on shorter cranks I read, but since when? And are those influencing either his cramping, or his sprint or both?

A lot of riders had cramps according to Edward Theuns. Has to do with coming from altitude, and the change in weather.

 

[Rackham]

WvA apparently wanted to race Gent-Wevelgem on Sunday. The team said no.

Wout van Aert and Team Visma | Lease a Bike not on the same page? "He still wanted to start in Gent Wevelgem"

Once again, Wout van Aert finds himself at the centre of attention, and once again, the headlines surrounding the Belgian are far from positive. Following a disappointing ending to an otherwise strong...

cyclinguptodate.com

It's a cliché at this point but Visma is too science focused and not 'human' enough. FYI Heijboer might be an expert in his particular field but he's still the same man who advised Rog against riding the 2021 Olympics ITT, i.e. because of what his 'data' said.

It should always be man > math, every time. The latter should serve the former. They ignored that and WvA exploded like a pressure cooker yesterday.

 

[gregrowlerson]

Tbh I haven’t got so involved in RVV until this year. Now, maybe because of the MVDP / Pogacar rivalry and buildup, I have a much better appreciation of this monument.

Some of us on the other side of the planet who have never been to Europe let alone Belgium are still learning about professional cycling - largely thanks to the internet.

I've been watching Flanders at times for a while now, but I think that 2022 was the first edition that I took a major interest in, or that it had me on the edge of my seat. It's probably the best guaranteed day of racing of the season.

 

[dazaau]

WvA apparently wanted to race Gent-Wevelgem on Sunday. The team said no.

Wout van Aert and Team Visma | Lease a Bike not on the same page? "He still wanted to start in Gent Wevelgem"

Once again, Wout van Aert finds himself at the centre of attention, and once again, the headlines surrounding the Belgian are far from positive. Following a disappointing ending to an otherwise strong...

cyclinguptodate.com

It's a cliché at this point but Visma is too science focused and not 'human' enough. FYI Heijboer might be an expert in his particular field but he's still the same man who advised Rog against riding the 2021 Olympics ITT, i.e. because of what his 'data' said.

It should always be man > math, every time. The latter should serve the former. They ignored that and WvA exploded like a pressure cooker yesterday.

They are crazy. I'm not even sure how math gets you to dwars > GW.

RVV is in a few days and it will be one of the hardest in history with MVDP and Pog both in insane form, and now he has thrashed himself a few days before the big race and done his head in as well.

I just hope he has a great PR.

 

[Berniece]

They are crazy. I'm not even sure how math gets you to dwars > GW.

RVV is in a few days and it will be one of the hardest in history with MVDP and Pog both in insane form, and now he has thrashed himself a few days before the big race and done his head in as well.

I just hope he had a great PR.

How has he thrashed himself? Physically I mean

 

[dazaau]

How has he thrashed himself? Physically I mean

They all seemed pretty spent at the end. Apparently he cramped as well. It's only a few days to RVV. I know they are used to backing it up day after day but he hasn't had a lot of race days and it's early in the season, meanwhile Pog and MVDP have a meticulous run in.

 

[Rackham]

There's been a lot said and written about Belgian media and fans putting an insane amount of pressure on WvA in monuments but looking at his preparation here and now for these spring 25 races, Visma have done their part as well in making a really huge deal out of De Ronde and Roubaix.

So many races he could have done for race sharpness or morale boosts (or even just a high placing which he could have had in Milan San Remo) were deliberately left off his program.

 

[Berniece]

They all seemed pretty spent at the end. Apparently he cramped as well. It's only a few days to RVV. I know they are used to backing it up day after day but he hasn't had a lot of race days and it's early in the season, meanwhile Pog and MVDP have a meticulous run in.

Cramping was normal, he'll be fine by Sunday. Obviously not at Pogacar/MVDP level, he's just not that good. But I wouldn't be surprised if he's on the podium too.

 

[dazaau]

Cramping was normal, he'll be fine by Sunday. Obviously not at Pogacar/MVDP level, he's just not that good. But I wouldn't be surprised if he's on the podium too.

Fair, just seems if he wanted to do GW I don't see why this is a better prep.

 

[Berniece]

Fair, just seems if he wanted to do GW I don't see why this is a better prep.

That I agree about. Even more so since you now how mentally heavy this period is for him. If he wanted to ride GW to get more racing kilometers in, they should've listened to him. It's not like he asked for something crazy.