Not only Wout van Aert, whole Visma is as if paralyzed by fear of crashing: "That's also why Vingegaard didn't go to Itzulia"

If you have a crash or something fearful scary then facing that at a later time helps you overcome it lets not forget Jonas V didn't get up off the ground at Itzulia so has mental scars to surmount not only physical. To pick yourself up is ½ way to healing and getting over the problem!

If it's true, it's very sad. Generally, when a cyclist reaches this point of being afraid of falling, they usually end up retiring after a short time.

If I was a pro, I'd belong at Visma. I'm always scared of crashing, even on our slightly rolling country roads.

there are loads of people and pundits who spend a lot of time griping about how few races some of the big names compete in these days. i think it’s a dumb argument personally but to each his own. in the case of jonas, though, i think a very limited calendar makes a ton of sense and wouldn’t need to be explained by a deep fear of crashing. to me, jonas really does seem like a pure grand tour racer. the explosiveness needed for even a climber’s classic, like il lombardia, isn’t really there when heads up with guys like remco and tadej. with the exception of the occasional MIND BLOWING time trial effort, jonas is like death by a thousand cuts. over the course of days he just grinds and grinds until a breaking point. a could see him just doing the Tour and the lead up prep races, like tour de suisse. in a year like this, MAAAAYYBEEE the world championships because of the course. Now, if you throw in some (pretty understandable) skittishness about getting in another wreck, well, whatevs.

wout is another story. about that i would just say that wouter is a total bad-ass and when it comes to mastering one’s own fear, van aert seems like a one-percenter to me. remember that it’s not just the crashes from the last couple years that he carries around in his head, it’s also that horrific one from the TT at the tour in like 2019, which was the worst of all of them. i don’t think he’s skipping races because he’s afraid.

all of what i’ve said is just a feeling. i can’t back it up and wouldn’t try. it’s just a sloppy, half thought out IT KINDA SEEMS TO ME THAT… but it really does seem like that. to me.

Itzulia? Are you sure it wasn’t more a boycott? Didn’t see many others going who crashed last year, out of the dozen of the crash only Cras I think.