"It is important to find your fun again" - Wout van Aert back enjoying his cycling after difficult year according to Visma's Maarten Wynants

2024 won't be remembered as the greatest year of Wout van Aert's career. Despite some success, most notably at the Vuelta a Espana, the Belgian superstar consistently saw his momentum scuppered by crashes over the course of the year.

According to Team Visma | Lease a Bike's Maarten Wynants though, Van Aert has re-found his happiness on the bike during this winter in cyclocross. "Wout still has that passion for cyclo-cross. Physically, this adds something to his winter, but mentally it is at least as valuable," explains Wynants in conversation with Het Laatste Nieuws, stressing the importance of happiness for a rider. "Do you remember what Frank Vandenbroucke always said? 'If the head is good, the legs are also good.' There is some truth in that. Nowadays, we have a lot of data from which we can deduce all sorts of things, but being happy and being able to do the things you are going to do is just as important."

Van Aert himself said pre-winter that his return to cyclocross was due to his love for the sport. It seems things have gone to plan too with Van Aert happy heading into the 2025 road season. "He has enjoyed being able to ride a number of races in recent weeks. This is why he became a cyclist in the first place: to float around in the mud," says Wynants. "When you have had a year like him with a lot of serious injuries, and you have been at home for a long time without a bike, it is important to find your fun again. This winter was very important for Wout in his head.”

In terms of his road season, things get underway for Van Aert on February 17th, as he tackles the Spanish one-day race Clásica Jaén. From there, it's a trip to the Volta ao Algarve before the Spring Classics begin in earnest, before a Giro d'Italia debut in May.