"There are certainly places enough to make a difference" - Wout van Aert does not count on sprint finish at Glasgow World Championships

Belgium come in with three big favourites for the rainbow jersey in Glasgow, one of them Wout van Aert. Without a surprise he can contest for the win in a hilly and technical circuit, but he doesn't expect to put his sprint to much use.

“This World Championship is certainly a main goal. I rode differently in the Tour than last year, also due to private circumstances. But also because this World Championship was coming up," van Aert said in a press conference yesterday. "That's why I didn't go green. I'm not here to just come along for a ride. It will be a tough course. Very technical too. There are certainly places enough to make a difference. There is a lot of talk about that last hill, but there are several possibilities.”

The preparation looked ideal, at the Tour de France his form looked to build up enough throughout the two weeks and he impressed, as usual, on all terrains. Although he didn't take a win his form indicates that he can do so this Sunday, after he left the race early for the birth of his second child he took a bit of extra rest and training towards what is the biggest remaining goal of his season.

He will team up with an incredibly strong team, one which includes both Remco Evenepoel. Notably, former World Champion Tom Boonen criticized the choice of the Belgian coach, he would not have united Philipsen with van Aert. Van Aert responds to that: “Jasper is super strong, he has already proven that enough. We have different scenarios. Jasper has to follow and then sprint. To me, that's not exactly bad. We have to see the positive in it.”