"He needs to pick up the bike-handling skills again so he doesn't fall anymore" - Experts urge Wout van Aert to ride full cyclocross campaign this winter

For Wout van Aert, 2024 has been a year consistently disrupted by crashes and subsequent injuries. After showing signs of returning to his best form at the Vuelta a Espana, this Belgian once again was once again a victim of a crash.

"Of course he's disappointed. He'll be satisfied somewhere and if he goes to the Giro next year, he'll have won stages in all three of the Grand Tours," Eurosport pundit Jan Hermsen reflects. "But of course this is a shitty end to the year. His goal was to become world champion or European champion. We've seen the best Wout van Aert of the entire year and that ends against a Spanish wall. That's really sour."

Was the Wout van Aert we saw at the 2024 Vuelta a Espana the best version of the Belgian though? Jeroen Vanbelleghem isn't so sure. "He said himself he was very good, but not at the level of the Tour a few years ago," the expert analyses. "You also saw that in a few mountain stages where he had to drop off quite early given the group that was still together. Then in the Tour he went much further along.”

“He was getting really good and it's such a shame," Vanbelleghem continues however, well aware that the crash of a Van Aert is also a big blow to Belgian hopes of winning either the European title or the Rainbow Jersey. "He was really getting ready for the World Championship. It has unfortunately gone this way and it has been a terrible season for him."

But why is Van Aert such a crash magnet? According to Bobbie Traksel, the multi-discipline star's bike handling abilities might have trailed off a bit in recent season. “I actually hope he will ride a full cyclocross season again," says Traksel. "He needs to pick up the bike-handling skills again so he doesn't fall anymore. I'm referring to the fall in the Tour de France. That would never happen to a real cross rider. I do think this is going to take a little longer and it's quite a mental tick.”