"I never really went crazy" - Wout van Aert stays upright and takes success at national championships

Wout van Aert has returned to his winning ways today, getting to the top step for the first time since the spring, he became the new Belgian time-trial champion.

“I have done almost nothing for the last three days. I felt for the first time yesterday that my legs were a little better. I think I had a decent level in Switzerland, but I just wasn't fresh enough to deliver top performances. Today I am taking a nice step forward," van Aert said in a post-race interview. “The feeling is of course important and how it goes on training, but you also want to see it confirmed in results. It is also only the second race that I have won this year. I have been looking forward to being on the highest podium again for a long time.”

Having recently been defeated by Remco Evenepoel twice at the Tour de Suisse against the clock, it wasn't the best of run-ups for the Jumbo-Visma rider. The duo headlined the time-trial and were clear favourites, but there was a meaningful split when Remco Evenepoel slid out in the wet conditions.

“But when I had the best split time at the start of the second lap, I realized that Remco had changed bikes and was a bit behind. In the second lap I rode fast, but tried to take less risks in the corners," van Aert explained. He stayed upright on the bike all the way to the finish, and had 50 seconds still over runner-up Alec Segaert, taking the win.

“That is of course difficult. If you don't want to take any risks, you should stay home. I was here to try and win the title. I tried to take turns in a controlled manner. I think I did well. I never really went crazy, but I went through the corners quickly. It is of course good that I stayed straight, but the main goal was to take the title today," he concluded.