"Are we all getting sick more easily since coronavirus?": Wout Van Aert suggests peloton is still haunted by its side-effects

Wout Van Aert has been through many downs in recent years which notably slowed down his great career. And although bad luck has been the culprit more often than not, Van Aert is not a supporter of supernatural causes, and looks for a rational reason of some of his struggles elsewhere.

Forget the long history of Van Aert's injuries from races, even though he's a regular at local clinic. It's a part of cycling, and Van Aert has understanding that in-race incidents can happen. What bothers the Visma | Lease a Bike star is the frequency of illnesses which do anything but help an athlete's performance. And in recent years, there have been far too many cases for Van Aert's liking.

"Unfortunately, I've been getting sick too often lately," Van Aert commented during his appearance on the Live Slow Ride Fast podcast.

"In the past, it almost never happened to me. Is it because of the kids now, or could it be that since the coronavirus, we're all getting sick more easily? In any case, I feel like I've become much more fragile in recent years This has frustrated me quite a bit on several occasions."

Obviously, Van Aert is not pointing the finger at his children - it is no secret schools are the hotbed of disease, nor does he intend to take measures that will affect their growth or their family relationship: "I just want to be a normal dad, giving our children as normal an upbringing as possible. The last thing I want is to keep them home from school to avoid illnesses or anything like that. I don't even think about it."

Van Aert is currently out of competition due to an ankle injury sustained at the Zilvermeercross in Mol, but has already resumed training two weeks after the fall.

His season debut is planned for Omloop Het Nieuwsblad at the end of this month, with further appointments in Italy; the Strade Bianche, Tirreno-Adriatico and Milano-Sanremo. Van Aert's preparation should then culminate with an umpteenth attempt to finally win one of the cobbled Monuments; either the Tour of Flanders or Paris-Roubaix.