- Jul 9, 2009
- 7,950
- 1,380
- 20,680
When you add that to the major injuries he's had in the last few years he has had some very disadvantageous periods of enforced rest.
Sprain and small fracture in ankle for Wout. CX season over, surgery tomorrow.
- Jul 31, 2024
- 839
- 898
- 4,180
Tough luck, hope this won't cost him too much. i had renewed believe in him this year. Now it's wait and see.
This sounds like 6 months of rehab and missed intense training to get back to strength. Hate to see where this accumulative damage is taking his career.
He was looking really strong, that corner where he crashed was a danger zone though.
That's a pretty pessimistic timeline, if the injury is as reported. His spring preparation won't be done according to plan, but he should be ready to ride at Flanders at Roubaix.
His Spring preparation is now. Paris Roubaix is April 12th...just over 3 months away. That, and ask any rider that's completed a backmarker's pace what part of their body wasn't in agony. I believe the answer is none and the most affected parts are neck, hands, feet and lower back. Those areas take a beating, for sure.
He is a Trojan for pain endurance but not being able to train for that abuse is a limitation. That's why he does/did cyclocross.
- Jul 16, 2015
- 5,382
- 13,964
- 23,180
An absolutely egregious injury suffered at the worst time considering the classics season in spring.
And this IMO is one too many, i.e. it feels like every year there's something that holds him back - something injury/recovery related - in the classics.
And this IMO is one too many, i.e. it feels like every year there's something that holds him back - something injury/recovery related - in the classics.
Having seen some people with approx. the same injury, I'd say that, optimistically, he could be able to put pressure on that ankle / foot within a week and start training rollers again.
If not, it could be 1-2 weeks off the bike.
If not, it could be 1-2 weeks off the bike.
It will be more than 1-2 weeks off the bike.
Especially if requiring surgery.
A fracture still takes few weeks give or take.
He will miss most of January and some time into Feb. Best case scenario he can train fully in March.
He should put everything on trying to be in some form and shape for PR.
Otherwise... just try to aim for Tour and second half of the season. Shame, but it is what it is.
Rethink riding cyclo-cross again. He got nothing to prove there.
Especially if requiring surgery.
A fracture still takes few weeks give or take.
He will miss most of January and some time into Feb. Best case scenario he can train fully in March.
He should put everything on trying to be in some form and shape for PR.
Otherwise... just try to aim for Tour and second half of the season. Shame, but it is what it is.
Rethink riding cyclo-cross again. He got nothing to prove there.
Hopefully MvdP will win his 8th CX World Championship this year and retires from CX racing. Then Wout will not feel the need to follow him to the fields each winter.
its 98-99 days now isnt it I saw the friends of the Pave posting there was 100 days to go just after New Years.
its what I feared when I saw him hobbling that he'd broken a bone, and it might be a small fracture, most likely meaning a small bone fracture, as opposed to its just a tiny microscopic fracture, surgery means plating/screwing it Im guessing, but that limits movement, and you do need your ankle to move freely to pedal cleanly on the bike.
so even if its 3-4weeks recovery to fix the break, presumably including removing the plate at some point. thats 3-4 weeks off the bike where he cant ride, and then its how confident the right leg can take full power again, because even when its healed, it will still hurt for a while.
Im sure theyll target the classics, because its a good thing to focus on for a recovery, but its got to be 50/50 at this stage whether he'll make it or in any competitive form.
its what I feared when I saw him hobbling that he'd broken a bone, and it might be a small fracture, most likely meaning a small bone fracture, as opposed to its just a tiny microscopic fracture, surgery means plating/screwing it Im guessing, but that limits movement, and you do need your ankle to move freely to pedal cleanly on the bike.
so even if its 3-4weeks recovery to fix the break, presumably including removing the plate at some point. thats 3-4 weeks off the bike where he cant ride, and then its how confident the right leg can take full power again, because even when its healed, it will still hurt for a while.
Im sure theyll target the classics, because its a good thing to focus on for a recovery, but its got to be 50/50 at this stage whether he'll make it or in any competitive form.
I get your point, but cross means a lot to Wout, and this being the first time in 239 xcross races that he has had dnf. Safer to stay away from the road perhaps.
Think he is better off focusing on one thing at this point in his career and it shouldnt be cross, but if that is what he would choose then its his decision. He might have wasted his best years on the road and chance to win the biggest races anyway.
- Jul 31, 2024
- 839
- 898
- 4,180
I think WVA needs cross, and not just for his emotional well being. I think those short bursts of accel or hard to emulate in practice. However with the freezing weather (hard ground, slippery, cold) yesterday was less than perfect to avoid injuries. Maybe he should ride cross only when it's above 2- 3 degrees or so.
Pidcock had his best climbing season last year after giving up cross.
It's no longer worth it for Van Aert, because he's not even on par with MVDP like he was four years ago.
He has a better chance of winning San Remo than a cross race, and he has been skipping San Remo to train.
It's no longer worth it for Van Aert, because he's not even on par with MVDP like he was four years ago.
He has a better chance of winning San Remo than a cross race, and he has been skipping San Remo to train.
He's not focusing on cross.
It is just a little something to do in the winter. He obviously enjoys it, close to home and it is part of his huge popularity in Flanders. And I guess the sponsors appreciate the extra visibility?
Did I say he was focusing on cross?
I just said he got nothing to prove there anymore.
If he enjoys it and has incentives to ride... he can be my guest and do what he wants, but it is clear it hasnt benefited him at all for a few years for his ambitions on the road.
he did, but he also wasnt having to worry too much about training for an MTB in the Olympics race , and not having to follow Ineos training plans, its clear he was a lot happier last year in general and it reflected in his performances, it wasnt just about limiting his cross time, which he has always loved doing in the past, and Im sure if it aligned with his off season plans he'd still be doing it.
I dont know that his road goals have been affected by his cross, MvdP came out completely tanking the field on the road last year, and no-one accused him of wasting his time in the mud.
whilst its been Wouts crashes on the road that have harmed his road ambitions, that knee injury at the Vuelta is what caused his poor form in the classics the following year because literally the only time he'd ridden a bike competitively since that crash was doing CX, without that he'd probably have been even further back.
- Jul 31, 2024
- 839
- 898
- 4,180
WVA needs to be okay at climbing but not great. he needs quick accel burst, good top speed sprint, and strong 1-15 minute long efforts. He does not need to ride the high mountains well. he needs to ride the poggio, Oude Kwaremont, Arenberg, Carrefour well after an endurance race. And for those types of efforts cyclocross is very useful (if you don't pick up injuries). Add in the technical aspect that's useful for the cobbles, and the grind of Bianchi and i do not see cyclocross as something Van Aert needs to skip. Yesterday was just not a good day cause of the weather.
I don't think Pidcock is a useful comparison. He improved as a climber after ditching cross, but that is a skill that has little to do with the demands of a cross race. The accelerations and short duration power are arguably Wout's biggest weakness in the classics he desperately wants to win.
MVDP gets none of the spiritual benefit of riding cx (the crowds are at best indifferent to him) but I believe that he thinks his cross season is an important part of preparing for spring. I don't think Wout really is using cross as training but perhaps he should.
Other than snow or ice over pavement, cross isn't a bigger injury risk than riding up and down volcanoes all winter
MVDP gets none of the spiritual benefit of riding cx (the crowds are at best indifferent to him) but I believe that he thinks his cross season is an important part of preparing for spring. I don't think Wout really is using cross as training but perhaps he should.
Other than snow or ice over pavement, cross isn't a bigger injury risk than riding up and down volcanoes all winter
TRENDING THREADS
-
Teams & Riders The Remco Evenepoel is the next Eddy Merckx thread- Started by DNP-Old
- Replies: 36K
-
Teams & Riders Tadej Pogačar discussion thread- Started by Lequack
- Replies: 41K
-
Teams & Riders The Great Big Cycling Transfers, Extensions, and Rumours Thread- Started by RedheadDane
- Replies: 13K
-
-
Teams & Riders Everybody needs a little bit of Roglstomp in their lives- Started by johnymax
- Replies: 23K
-
Teams & Riders Jonas Vingegaard thread: Love in Iberia- Started by Samu Cuenca
- Replies: 10K
-
Teams & Riders Chris Froome Discussion Thread.- Started by Miburo
- Replies: 22K
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram