"When I tried to move I felt that something was wrong..." - Wout van Aert recalls spring ending crash in new Team Visma | Lease a Bike documentary
CyclingFriday, 03 May 2024 at 10:35
Having entered this Spring Classics season with so much optimism, Wout van Aert's campaign was brought to a screeching halt by a nasty crash at Dwars Door Vlaanderen. In the new, 'Road to Resilience' documentary on the Team Visma | Lease a Bike YouTube page, the Belgian has reflected on said crash.
“At first it was of course quite a shock,” recalls van Aert of the crash that left him with a fractured collarbone, fractured rib(s) and a fractured sternum. “I wanted to get to the side of the road as quickly as possible. But when I tried to move I felt that something was wrong with my shoulder and hip. Yes, I was in a lot of pain until I was given strong medication in the hospital.”
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“That first half hour was really terrible. They were already able to determine the collarbone fracture, but this was then confirmed by the photos. Then they thought my ribs had been hit a little too. And the next doctor came and said that I had broken seven of them. Shortly afterwards my sternum was also broken," continues the 29-year-old. "At that moment I was quite calm and I said to laugh: 'I hope there won't be too many more doctors, because there will only be injuries.'”
As mentioned, that crash turned out to be a season-altering one for van Aert. Not only did it end his spring, but also ruled him out of the upcoming Giro d'Italia. Just last week though, the Belgian posted video of himself back on the roads once again, ready to return later this summer for the Olympic Games and the World Championships.
“Considering all the circumstances, I'm doing quite well. In the last week I have become reasonably mobile again and can do the normal things in life. According to the people who guide me, my recovery is going well. It's a nice feeling to be able to put on the bib shorts again. Even though that was of course quite a task,” he laughs. “It is confronting that you were perhaps in one of the best conditions of your life and then suddenly you are thrown back to the worst possible condition. It's certainly nice to be a bit active again."
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- Dude has a record of crashing every Giroabstractengineer09-05-2025
- That was an unfortunate crash by Mikel Landa. Hopefully he's not seriously injured, and can recover in time to help out Remco at the TDF.
santiagobenites09-05-2025 - Yep, and considering neither is really built for climbing, it speaks volumes. Only name I can see who has a climbers build is KN. An observation maybe someone will find interesting or have more info on, compared to men, the strong lady climbers are heavier, often the equivalent of their male versions for same height. Is it because the girls try to build muscle to climb better or the boys try to lose weight for that or both, seems paradoxical.Mistermaumau09-05-2025
- His injury problems were known to his past team who still tried to re-sign him, who’s fault, especially if the medical team fails to resolve problems? Not sure it’s offered or possible but teams are free to consider insurance or contract clauses in order to mitigate financial risks.Mistermaumau09-05-2025
- Lafay is the classic example of you get a great TDF stage win, get a lucrative contract and then you dont perform ever again, due to partying or injuries.abstractengineer09-05-2025
- I think it’s pretty weird under the circumstances and won’t be surprised if one day we discover some unmentioned detail that triggered this. In the meantime, hope he finds himself elsewhere.Mistermaumau08-05-2025
- Reusser is amazing too. More than just a TT specialist.mobk08-05-2025
- Tough to beat her on the long climbs if she has a team that will bring her fresh to the bottom of the climbsmobk08-05-2025
- Er, building up a 20 second gap in less than a km against the best is not exactly nothing, must have been at least 10% faster. Peletons also reel in breakaways but if they don’t manage BEFORE the end the reeling in doesn’t really mean much does it. She did exactly the right think, destroyed the others’ chances of catching her with a massive attack.Mistermaumau08-05-2025
- Demi must be so happy to now be on a team that works for her, and not against her. I think that if she and the team get their tactics dialed in, she could prove to be unstoppable this year.santiagobenites08-05-2025
If he comes to TDF, he'll be very rusty, due to lack of form, under him.
He'll be fine for the TdF. He was already near his peak before the accident. If you're gonna get injured badly, that's when you want it to happen. He really won't be losing much so long as he can start with real intensity in the next 2 weeks
Yes, although the crash was bad, it wasn’t that bad that the body switched off and went into survival mode so recovery is bound to be much easier.
I remember having similar but worse injuries, included a lung so punctured I was coughing up blood and there was absolutely no pain, in fact, I had to move myself to safety so putting a lot of pressure on my broken collar bone and it was only then that I noticed something was wrong because I couldn’t keep my body up by pressing on my arm, but no pain, whatever the body produces at that moment, it’s bloody effective.
And he'll probadly be rusty at TDF, because he lost all the form he has, after that crash. A few yrs earlier, a similar accident, albeit not at an offocial race, Egan [Bernal] was almost killed during his altitude training. He was hitting a truck. He was literally, lucky to be alive, let alone able to race again