"I don't have any concrete plans yet when I'll be back on the bike" - Wout van Aert admits a return is still some way off despite positive progress

It's been something of a rollercoaster season for Wout van Aert in 2024. Alongside the highs of a successful Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne and a stunning Vuelta a Espana, have been the disappointments of a Spring-ending crash at Dwars door Vlaanderen and a sad end to his Vuelta debut, crashing out on stage 16.

On the day it's been revealed that the 30-year-old Belgian has officially put pen to paper on what is essentially a lifetime contract with Team Visma | Lease a Bike, Van Aert has also offered up an update to his physical condition, following the nasty crash out of the Spanish Grand Tour.

"Pretty good considering the circumstances," says Van Aert when asked about his current condition, in quotes collected by In De Leidestrui. "That crash had a serious impact and I was in hospital for a while. Last week was not an easy week, in which I could hardly move my knee and had to lie on the couch a lot. I have been a bit more mobile for a few days now and I can at least walk again."

Although that does sound positive, a return to racing is still some time off. "I had a deep wound in my knee. That had to be stitched up, and the knee is in a difficult place. In order for that to heal properly, I couldn't start my leg for a long time. Furthermore, during additional examinations in Belgium we determined that there was also serious damage to the knee joint. A dent, as it were, on the side. That explained the great pain I had and why it was so difficult to support myself. But fortunately, it is an injury that will not hold me back, as soon as I get back on the bike," Van Aert explains.

"I have no concrete plans yet when I will be back on the bike, unfortunately. First I want to pick up normal life, then I can think about cycling again after that," he concludes. "There is no time pressure either, because the season is already over for me, unfortunately. I am already thinking about next year, but it is too early to talk about it concretely. The future will tell when I can return to competition, but if I will remember one thing from the Vuelta, it was that I was completely back and had found the legs again. This injury should not stop me from returning to that level."