The first Monument of the 2025 season awaits the peloton this weekend at
Milano-Sanremo. For
Wout van Aert, it is a race with a lot of history attached, with it being the only Monument he has ever won back in 2020. This time around however, the Belgian superstar is set to be one of the more notable absentees from the start line.
As mentioned, despite all of Van Aert's numerous successes over the course of his career, just one Monument win has been added to his palmares. A relatively poor return for someone of such immense talent. Of all of the five biggest one-day races on the cycling calendar though, it is arguably Milano-Sanremo that has always suited him best. As such, the 30-year-old's decision to skip the Italian Classic in 2025 has not been met with approval by some of his fellow countrymen, with the Belgian cycling expert
Michel Wuyts notably speaking out.