The international peloton has lost one of its great entertainers for the next races. The Belgian Wout van Aert (Visma Lease a Bike) will not be in the Tour of Flanders next Sunday, nor in the rest of the spring classics, as well as probably in the Giro d’Italia after suffering a fractured collarbone and several ribs after a fall in Across Flanders.
Van Aert found himself involved in a pileup 57 kilometers from the finish line with several runners, including the Eritrean Girmay and the Dane Mads Pedersen, all of them favorites in the race.
From the beginning it was clear that this was a very serious fall. The runner was completely bruised and in obvious signs of pain. An ambulance had to transport him while he could not hold back his tears.
After Van Aert’s withdrawal, the hospital found that the fall had caused him to fracture his collarbone and several ribs, making his immediate return to competition impossible.
“It is not clear how long his recovery will take. He will definitely miss the Tour of Flanders, Paris-Roubaix and the Amstel Gold Race. We wish Wout all the best and a speedy recovery!” his team announced.
“Just a deep bow to our Wout, who has made all kinds of sacrifices over the past few months to be at his best in the spring classics. The form was there, but unfortunately luck was not on his side.
Cycling is a wonderful sport. But at the same time, top-level sport is also very ruthless.
We will always support you and we are sure that you will also come back stronger from this!”, his team wished him
