Wout Van Aert abandons Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes - Recent injury a cause for worries at Visma
Cycling
Wout Van Aert suffered a crash during training last week and has an elbow injury that has stayed with him throughout the Tour Auvergne-Rhônes-Alpes. The Team Visma | Lease a Bike has abandoned the race ahead of stage 6, raising questions about the Tour de France.
Van Aert withdraws from Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
"Wout van Aert will not appear at the start of stage 6 of Tour Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes today. He is still experiencing significant discomfort in his elbow related to the crash he sustained last week," the Dutch team explained on a social media post.
"Wout will travel back to Belgium for further medical examinations. Join us in wishing Wout a smooth recovery".
The Belgian had a few difficult first few days at the French race, quite far from the form he had shown throughout the spring. Whilst this was a worrying sign, as the race progressed there were two flat finales where he showed his speed.
With the breakaway caught, stage 5 provided the sprinters with their only shot at fighting for victory this week, and it was Van Aert who took the victory. A positive sign ahead of the Tour de France, but it hasn't lasted long.
Read also
A cause for worry ahead of the Tour de France?
Van Aert will undergo more examinations on his elbow injury, however it does not seem like it will pose an issue to his training schedule, taking into consideration he has raced the first days of the French race and has ended his stint with a stage win.
But his form is still quite far from what it could be, three weeks from the Grand Depart. The Belgian has hinted that the bunch sprints at the Tour may not be a goal, with a much stronger field and need to take risks just to be in contention; and ultimately he may just take part in a domestique role.
The Paris-Roubaix has a few more weeks ahead of the race in order to prepare for it, some of it likely to be spent at altitude where he should join Jonas Vingegaard who will soon also travel for his pre-Tour training camp.
Rúben SilvaEditor-in-Chief
A founding contributor to CyclingUpToDate since its launch in January 2022, Ruben Silva has played a central role in shaping the site’s editorial direction and long-term growth. Before joining the project, he built his experience through independent blogging at Echelons Hub and by producing race previews for Ciclismo Internacional, developing a strong analytical voice rooted in daily engagement with professional cycling.
Beyond editorial work, he has been closely involved in the expansion and coordination of CyclingUpToDate’s wider network, helping establish and support sister platforms across multiple languages. This includes ongoing collaboration with CiclismoAlDia (Spanish), CiclismoAtual (Portuguese), WielrennenUpToDate (Dutch), and RadsportAktuell (German), contributing to a shared editorial vision and consistent international coverage.
He also helps oversee editorial governance across the network, setting standards for accuracy and consistency and coordinating updates or corrections when needed.
Originally from the Porto metropolitan area in Portugal, he holds a bachelor’s degree in Geography. His path into cycling journalism was shaped not through formal media training, but through independent reporting, community engagement, and sustained on-the-ground involvement in the sport.
Over the course of his career, he has conducted approximately 100 interviews across road cycling and cyclocross, ranging from one-to-one conversations and online formats to press conferences and on-site pre- and post-race coverage. His interviews include leading riders, team managers, and prominent figures within cycling media: Tadej Pogacar, Jonas Vingegaard, Mathieu van der Poel, Primoz Roglic, Wout van Aert, Joao Almeida and Tom Pidcock; managers like Patrick Lefevere and Joxean Matxin; and YouTube personality Bryan Kennedy (BKXC)...
Within 18 months of launch, he helped grow CyclingUpToDate’s English-language platform into one of the most-read cycling news websites, built entirely from the ground up. As both a professional journalist and lifelong cycling enthusiast, his focus remains on delivering accurate, timely, and well-contextualized coverage.
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