"I wanted to lead out Christophe" - Wout Van Aert won again in Denmark, but that was never the plan
Cycling
The Tour of Denmark has thus far been fully dominated by Team Visma | Lease a Bike, who have won all three stages with Wout Van Aert. The Belgian rider spoke about having bad legs on the queen stage around the Vejle circuit and how winning wasn't his plan.
Van Aert avoids near-disaster crash
The Dutch team controlled the stage where they began with the lead, but they were also close to disaster. Ashlin Barry crashed on the wet roads, and Van Aert was forced to move off road. He avoided the fall, but Visma was thrown into chaos due to the crash and the mechanicals that followed.
“I did not want to take any risks trying to pass him, so I jumped onto the kerb. It did not go perfectly and I punctured immediately," Van Aert explained in words to Sporza.
However the team was able to reorganize into the final circuit, and had their two leaders close to the front when necessary.
“It might sound strange after winning, but I did not feel particularly good. My legs were hurting a lot, so we had agreed that Christophe could race for the victory," he admitted.
The moment Wout Van Aert and several teammates jumped over a curb to avoid a fallen teammate
Van Aert tried helping Laporte take the win
In the final 20 kilometers Laporte thinned down the group, and the two riders then took turns attacking the group. They were not able to create the winning difference, but spent almost the entirety of their time in the group leading it.
“Part of it was bluff. I wanted the others to feel that attacking was pointless. Christophe and I had the situation under control, and tactically we played it well.”
Van Aert himself spent kilometers leading the group, despite leading the race with a gap that didn't allow him to relax with the uphill finish. And on the climb itself, he hit the front early on purposefully, not waiting for his rivals to take the front.
The plan was to provide a leadout for Laporte, who had been unable to go off the front solo. “I wanted to lead out Christophe, but near the top I saw that Kubis was the only rider still close. At that point, I had to go for it myself.”
Van Aert ended up dropping his competition, and accidentally rode himself to a third stage win, something that did mean a lot to him. “Three wins in a row. I have never done that before. It is a special feeling," he concluded.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
claps 7visitors 4
Just in
Popular news
Latest comments
- for what?frieders311-11-2026
- Blah blah blah!frieders311-11-2026
- Where Merckx just rode every single race he could and won all the time, Hinault won less often (percentage wise) because he was more judicious in what he raced. His palmares are nuts. He had amazing rivals, one to start his career and another to end it in the grand tours. His classics were solid. What sets him apart from Merckx and Pogačar are that he basically dabbled in the classics while the other two love(d) them. I used to compare Pogačar to Hinault for his grand tour record and occasional classics win, until I realized that the comparison was wrong. Pogačar loves the classics - ah, the memory of his reaction to finishing fourth in a 2 person sprint in Flanders in ‘22: utter domination in any one day race since then, even when he doesn’t win. Hinault lived for the grand tours and I don’t think anyone else will ever reach his record. 10 wins in 13 attempts? Good lord. An amazing rider. Wish there was more footage to watch.RidesHills11-11-2026
- I had no idea about that either.
santiagobenites10-11-2026 - great analysis thanks! appreciate you posting this. I didn't realize CX had a different standard for deviation. this is even more egregious it seems.mij10-11-2026
- As he isn't currently with Red Bull, I guess if he want to race for one more year he needs to find a team. He's 37 so this will be his last year I would guess, unless he wants to race for almost nothing like Froome did.awp10-11-2026
- I think some are making much ado about nothing. Even though Jonas is getting older, before his crash in the Tour, he looked like a solid 2nd all the way home. No one can really climb with Tadej until this year, Eric Mas showed himself which I think was a one off year for him and Paul Seixas has been able to be pretty close to him. Whatever stage race Jonas enters as long as Tadej is not there he is a favorite to win.awp10-11-2026
- Giro or not Giro, he won't win the Tour!MajorPayne10-11-2026
- Very true.awp10-11-2026
- Ciccone had a very strong end of season. Consistently attacking and livening up races. Hope he makes that last leap in progress and starts notching some significant wins. Great rider to watch.Occam10-11-2026
Loading
Write a comment