New Wout van Aert recovery update as Strava ride reveals progress after ankle surgery

A fresh glimpse into Wout van Aert’s rehabilitation has offered the clearest sign yet that his return to racing remains firmly on track. After a physio session at LAB Antwerp with kinesiologist Thijs Hertsens, the Visma rider did not head home by car. He rode.

Van Aert uploaded the session to Strava with the caption “Niet doelloos”, a playful nod to the detour he took via Doel on a 102.6 kilometre spin that lasted just over three hours.

This is not the first positive signal in recent weeks, but it is the most visually reassuring.

It moves the narrative from indoor recovery work and controlled training environments back out onto Belgian roads, where the demands begin to resemble racing again.

The context matters.

Van Aert fractured his ankle in the Zilvermeercross in Mol, an injury that immediately ended his cyclocross season and threatened to disrupt his entire road preparation. Surgery followed. At the Visma media day shortly after, he was still wearing a protective walking boot.

Within days, he was back on the bike. Within weeks, he travelled with the team to Spain for their winter training camp, where he was already able to complete long endurance rides. He later revealed he had managed a six-hour session there, albeit with limitations in the final range of ankle movement and without being able to sprint at full force.

He then explained on the Live Slow Ride Fast podcast that the swelling had reduced significantly, that walking was almost normal again, and that he had begun to accelerate out of corners on the bike. The message from those around him was consistent. His season start was not in danger.

This latest update fits perfectly into that sequence. Strength work with a taped ankle. Controlled rehab under supervision. Then a steady three-hour road ride immediately afterwards.

What stands out is the pattern of progression.

First came basic mobility. Then indoor pedalling. Then, long endurance work in Spain. Now comes normal road riding in Belgium, following physio work, with the ankle taped but clearly trusted enough to handle distance.

The only element still missing, by Van Aert’s own admission, is full sprinting. That is typically the final piece to return in ankle injuries. Everything else is already falling into place.

The Strava post therefore, is not just a casual training update. It is a marker that the rehabilitation has moved into a phase where load, balance and stability are being tested in real-world conditions rather than controlled environments.

Throughout this recovery, one date has quietly remained unchanged. Omloop Het Nieuwsblad on 28 February.

At no point has that target been publicly shifted. Each update, from Spain to the podcast to this latest Antwerp ride, reinforces that timeline rather than casting doubt on it.

The taped ankle is still there. The caution is still visible. But so is the confidence to ride 100 kilometres on open roads after a physio session.

For a rider whose winter initially looked derailed by a freak cross accident, the trajectory is now unmistakable. Van Aert is no longer simply recovering. He is rebuilding towards racing.